Press Release

New hospital emergency room facility to open February 17

By April Martin/Reporter Lifestyles Editor - Sweetwater Reporter

Residents of Sweetwater won't be standing in line waiting to be one of the first to experience the new Emergency Care Center like the new Wal-Mart down the street. However, the opening of the doors on Thursday Feb. 17, is just as important to the community.

The new $3 million facility has been completed and only final details, like putting in the ficus tree and the television in the waiting room, are left.

Tom Kennedy, Rolling Plains Memorial Hospital Administrator explained the biggest advantage the new Emergency Care Center has over the old area is space. With two separate waiting rooms, a family room, triage area and two large trauma rooms, doctors, nurses, technicians, emergency personnel and patients will have plenty of space.

Three entrances, each with their own function, can be used to enter the emergency room. To the far east, an entrance is available for those needing outpatient care such as lab work the day before surgery, or inpatient care such as paperwork that needs to be completed before admission into the hospital.

The west entrance is for walk-in emergencies.

Kennedy explained this area is for people who are too sick or injured to wait to see a doctor, but not so unwell they require an ambulance.

The two separate entrances and waiting areas are required by the state.

"The state doesn't want someone who is basically well sitting next to someone who is spewing germs all over the place," he said.

A triage department is also located in this area for those that have conditions that may need for more care than they initially thought.

"We don't want someone sitting in the waiting room having a heart attack. If Macho Joe comes in and is having trouble breathing and his left arm is hurting, a nurse can access him and send him straight back," Kennedy said.

The third entrance is for emergency response personnel and patients brought in by ambulance.

Once a patient is in the observation area, they will be taken to one of eight rooms. There are six rooms and two large trauma rooms in the new facility compared to four tiny rooms in the old space.

Each room has a plaque on the wall which indicates an individual or group who made a monetary contribution to the construction of the new facility. Over $100,000 was contributed. A large plaque is also hung in the waiting room. Rolling Plains Memorial Hospital employees donated to the construction, In addition to the plaque, the employees made their room exceptionally special by putting their signature on the wall before construction was completed.

The layout of the Emergency Care Center was vital to its construction. A board of individuals with various medical backgrounds worked to design an area that would provide the best and most efficient lay-out for medical care.

"The general layout is better," Kennedy said. The new emergency room has a more efficient proximity to the operating room and radiology department.

Another extra benefit is a decontamination room.

"In the old area, we had a garden hose and a kiddie pool," Kennedy said.

The new room features showers and beds and a steel door with access to the outside.

"In case someone is contaminated with chlorine or radioactive material, they can wash themselves off," he explained.

This room also offers the benefit of being prepared for terrorist activity.

A family room, complete with a couch and table, will be available for patient's families.

"If grandmother just isn't going to make it, this is a much better place to hear it," Kennedy said.

Before, such conversations took place in a hallway because there was not a proper area. The family room offers comfort and privacy.

A large classroom that can be divided offers another amenity for the hospital.

The room will be used internally for training and can be used for medically orientated classes such as childbirth or smoking sensation classes.

"We won't be having Tupperware parties in here," Kennedy said. However, non-profit groups may benefit from the area.

Along with the new construction, other parts of the hospital were renovated including a new home for the Cat Scan machine.

Kennedy explained that to move the old machine would cost $30,000. So the hospital took advantage of the renovated area and purchased a reconditioned machine for $70,000.

Even though everything is new and improved, Sweetwater residents won't be paying for the additions.

Hospital taxes were not increased for the building of the facility, since the funds were acquired by the Nolan County Hospital District over several years.

The new Emergency Care unit will be operational beginning Thursday at 10 a.m.

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