Q. When I moved to Gilbert I went through the process of finding doctors for myself and my children. As my boys get older and more fearless, I think I should also find a good hospital to take them to in case of an emergency. I live in an area of Gilbert that has three hospitals all very near, so how do I find out which one is best?
A.
You’re very smart to think this through before you are faced with an emergency situation. It’s much harder to think clearly when you have an injured child crying in your arms or when you’re facing a medical emergency.
Your first consideration should be whether this situation could be handled at an Urgent Care versus a hospital Emergency Room (ER). An ER is your best bet when you or a loved one is experiencing symptoms of a stroke or heart attack, any major injury such as head trauma, bleeding that does not stop after ten minutes of direct pressure, severe shortness of breath and any situation you feel is life threatening.
With so many hospitals close by, you are in a unique situation of having a real choice in an emergency. Most often people decide which ER to go to based on which is the closest. And while proximity is an important factor in choosing an ER, there are other things to consider:
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Is the ER backed by a hospital with areas of excellence, a deep specialty base and diagnostic technologies that can ensure the most accurate diagnoses and treatments? Approximately 17 percent of ER patients are admitted to the hospital for further observation or treatment, so you want to be sure your loved one won’t have to be transferred to another hospital to receive more extensive treatment.
- Is the ER efficient? I’m talking about more than a 30-minute guaranteed wait time to be seen by a physician. I mean real efficiencies that not only allow patients to be seen sooner, but that provide more thorough care in that shorter timeframe. At Chandler Regional Medical Center and Mercy Gilbert Medical Center, simplified processes were implemented earlier this year that have allowed us to drastically reduce the time a patient waits to see a physician, streamline communications among medical staff and with patients, provide more thorough diagnoses and treatments, and trim the overall time spent in the ER.
Be sure to speak with your neighbors, get recommendations from your family physician, and visit the hospitals’ Web sites. This will help you determine if all ER physicians are board certified and review general information about the hospital, its specialties, staff and philosophies.
The reality is that most ERs will be able to handle most emergent situations. But when it comes down to it, you want the most expert medical care available in any situation. Making a fast choice during an emergency is important. Making a quality choice is critical. I hope you never have to use your findings, but if you do, the research you do now will pay off in the end.
For more information, please call 480.728.8000.
