Emergency Department

Thank you for choosing the Emergency Department at OSF St. Joseph Medical Center, where board-certified physicians and specially trained nurses are dedicated to providing quality health care to its patients and their families.

In the Franciscan tradition and the Mission of The Sisters of the Third Order of Saint Francis, OSF St. Joseph Medical Center's nurses, physicians, hospital care providers, and support healthcare personnel serve all patients with the greatest care and love in a community that celebrates the gift of life.

What Can I Expect?

Triage
Patients who arrive at the Emergency Department are "triaged" or classified and treated based on the severity of their injury or illness. The most severe classification is "emergent," which includes patients with life-threatening injuries or illnesses. Emergent patients are always treated first.

While all injuries and illnesses are uncomfortable and worrisome to patients and their loved ones, our staff is well-trained to assess and determine the true severity of these conditions in order to prioritize them. You will be asked to enter a private area where a registered nurse specialized in emergency care will begin your initial assessment.

Registration
After your assessment, you will be registered into the Emergency Department by our Admitting staff. You will be asked a number of questions. The information is kept confidential and only those caring for you are allowed to view it.

Beds and Rooms
You will be taken into an emergency patient room when a bed becomes available. Here, an experienced nurse and board-certified physician in emergency medicine will take over your care and perform an assessment.

Care and Treatment
Once one of our emergency medical physicians examines you, he or she will decide what level of care, diagnostic tests, and treatment you will need:

• You may be admitted into the hospital for further care.
• You may require more tests and treatment in the Emergency Department.
• You may require limited treatment prior to returning home.

At all times throughout the treatment process, please keep us informed of any change in your condition in an effort to provide you with the best possible care.

Information you provide our physicians and staff is very important in developing an accurate diagnosis and providing you with the best treatment. Be thorough in explaining how you feel and the details of your illness, injury, or other medical conditions.

Average Treatment Time
We strive to treat you as quickly as possible, however the average length of stay in our Emergency Department varies with the type of illness or injury you have. During your stay, please let us know if there is anything we can do to make you more comfortable, such as dimming the lights or leaving the door to your room open or closed. If at any time, you feel you need additional assistance, please use the call light located near the bed.

Average times for exam results are:

• Labs - 1 to 1.5 hours
• CT Scans - 1.5 hours or more depending on the preparation required
• X-rays - 1 to 1.5 hours
• Cultures - 2 to 3 days and you will be notified by phone. Please provide us with your current phone number.

Medications & Prescriptions
Due to federal regulations, we cannot fill take-home prescriptions from the hospital's pharmacy. If the Emergency Department physician writes a prescription for you, you may fill it at any one of the area's retail pharmacies. Eastland Pharmacy, located in Eastland Medical Plaza II, is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The phone number is (309) 664-0505.

Please ask your nurse for information on additional pharmacies in the Bloomington-Normal area, including those open 24 hours. The nurse can also call your prescription in to a retail pharmacy before your discharge. This service allows time for the prescription to be filled and ready for pick-up when you leave. Don't hesitate to ask if you would like this service.

Discharge
All patients must stop at the registration desk before leaving the Emergency Department. Please make sure your contact information is correct as follow-up is sometimes needed after discharge.

Quality Service

All emergency physicians at OSF St. Joseph Medical Center are board certified in emergency medicine and complete at least 50 hours of continuing medical education each year. Every Emergency Department staff nurse must attend a six-week class in trauma nursing, and a 16-hour class in both Advance Cardiac Life Support and Pediatric Advanced Life Support. Continuing education for the nursing staff is also provided throughout the year.

You may be asked to complete a survey about your experience. Our goal is to provide you with the very best care, and in order to do so, we would like to receive your comments, concerns, suggestions, and evaluations.

Questions & Concerns

Always ask questions or make known any concerns you have when you talk with the physician or nurse treating you. We want you to leave our Emergency Department confident about your diagnosis, treatment, and discharge instructions. Please do not hesitate to remind us if we've forgotten to fulfill a request for you in a reasonable amount of time.

Treatment Area Guidelines

Food & Drinks
Please do not eat or drink anything while waiting to see the physician. Doing so may interfere with your examination, testing, diagnosis, or treatment, especially if you require surgery.

Visitors
Visitors are welcome in the treatment room upon patient request. Because of the limited space in each room, we ask that you limit the number of visitors to two at any given time. Visitors may be asked to temporarily leave the room so medical staff can facilitate treatment, protect patient privacy, or during critical situations. Please do not bring food or drink into the rooms. For safety reasons, we ask that you keep infants and small children from crawling or playing on room floors.

Cameras
Please do not bring cameras, as taking pictures and recording video is not allowed in the Emergency Department.

Billing

Registration will ask you for billing information. Please provide accurate and up-to-date personal information. Upon receiving your bill, please call should you have questions or concerns.

Parking

There is parking located outside the Emergency Department entrance. However, if you need assistance getting into the building, pull your vehicle directly in front of the Emergency Department doors and staff will assist you. Long term parking is available in the visitor parking lots just north of the hospital or south of the Center for Advanced Medicine.

Other Urgent Care Services

OSF PromptCare
PromptCare is a walk-in clinic designed to efficiently treat sudden minor illnesses and injuries for people of all ages. OSF St. Joseph Medical Center has an OSF PromptCare clinic located on the ground floor of Eastland Medical Plaza II (309-663-2100). PromptCare's hours are Monday through Saturday from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Sunday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. No appointment is ever necessary. Other area OSF PromptCare clinics are located at 1001 Mitsubishi Motorway, Bloomington (309-663-2100) and 2200 Ft. Jesse Road, Normal (309-661-6280).

Pastoral Care
OSF St. Joseph Medical Center is also here to take care of your spiritual well-being. Pastoral Care offers: critical decision-making, crisis assistance, grief ministry, pastoral counseling, listening, praying, communion/sacraments, and calling your spiritual leader. Pastoral Care and Social Services are located on the first floor of the main hospital between the chapel and gift shop. Pastoral Care staff is on-call 24-hours a day, seven days a week. The phone number is (309) 662-5799.

Translation or Interpretation Services
OSF St. Joseph Medical Center offers assistance with translation, hearing, or visual needs of our patients. Please let us know so that we may provide you with assistance in a timely manner.

Information Desk
The main information desk is located on the first floor of the main hospital near Admitting. There are additional information desks, which may or may not be staffed, located on the ground floor of the Center for Advanced Medicine near the Emergency Department, on the first floor of the Center for Advanced Medicine, and on the first floor of Eastland Medical Plaza I. Please don't hesitate to ask OSF St. Joseph Medical Center employees for directions or assistance.

Lounges/Restrooms/Vending
There are lounges, restrooms, and vending machines located within the Emergency Department waiting area, as well as on the first floor of the Center for Advanced Medicine.

ATM Machine
An ATM machine is located in the hospital's main lobby near the elevators and in the Emergency Department waiting area.

Cafeteria
The cafeteria is located on the lower level of the main hospital. Weekday hours are Monday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and 5 to 7 p.m. Saturday and Sunday hours are 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and 5 to 7 p.m.