Release Details

A Trip to the Emergency Room: Help Us Help You

Thursday Nov. 19, 2009

 United Regional’s Emergency Room Average Door to Discharge Time is Better than the National Average

 Overcrowding and long wait times in emergency rooms occur in hospitals throughout the U.S. The national average for “door to discharge” (the time a patient enters the ER to the time the patient leaves the ER after receiving treatment) is 4 hours and 3 minutes, with emergency rooms in Texas having a slightly poorer record of 4 hours and 18 minutes.*
 

While United Regional’s average door to discharge is considerably better, at 2 hours and 13 minutes, we continually strive to find ways to reduce it even more, while continuing to provide the high level of quality care expected by our patients and community.   

Help Us Help You

As the only full-service health care system and trauma center in the region, United Regional understands the responsibility that involves. We see approximately 70,000 patients in the emergency room each year, or 200 to 300 patients per day, depending on the time of year. 

 
So that we may continue to provide the highest quality emergency services for the communities we serve, we have developed a brochure to educate members of our community on what they can do prior to a medical emergency that can help improve their overall emergency room experience. We will be inserting the brochure into the Times Record News on November 20. The brochures will also be available in our emergency room, and will be distributed to physicians’ offices throughout the region. 
 
What We Want Patients to Know About the Emergency Room
 

The brochure includes information on what impacts emergency room “door to discharge” times and other helpful information such as on when to go to the emergency room and what conditions generally do not require emergency treatment; a check list of things to do in preparation for a medical emergency; forms to complete and keep accessible, including a list of current medications, medical conditions, and allergies; and emergency contact names and phone numbers. We are encouraging members of our community to copy the forms for use by other members of their household, or to call us and request additional booklets. 

Link to the Times Record News story published on November 19, 2009:

http://www.timesrecordnews.com/news/2009/nov/19/hospital-to-distribute-er-primer/


Click here to view a PDF related to this story.