Three Rivers Hospital to debut new ER, opening March 19

BREWSTER – Patients arriving for emergency care at Three Rivers Hospital will soon be treated in a new state-of-the-art emergency room that will debut next Tuesday, March 19.

The new ER occupies the same building as the old ER at 507 Hospital Way, but the entrance will now be from the east side of the complex rather than the main entrance on the west side of the building. It’s also closer to the on-site heli-pad for arriving LifeFlight trauma patients.

The emergency room serves as the front line of hospital services where patients needing often unplanned but immediate help meet the tip of the spear of rapid response caregivers. A modern ER has long been on the TRH wish list.
In a media release from TRH spokesperson Jennifer Best, hospital officials and board members added their voices to the latest of TRH facility upgrades.

“This is something we’ve wanted for years to provide better patient care,” said TRH CEO Scott Graham. “Nurses and providers are thrilled to treat patients in a bigger, up-to-date ER.”

“I’ve been on the board for eight years,” said Vice chair Vicki Orford, “and this move has been discussed all eight years.”

Where the current ER has three small exam rooms plus two overflow rooms, the new space provides seven large rooms with privacy doors and central nurses’ workstation with a clear line of sight to all patient rooms.

The new ER occupies space that previously housed the hospital’s intensive care unit and family medical clinic.

“This is a very exciting move for Three Rivers Hospital,” said Board Chair Mike Pruett who noted that the new ER will enhance the hospital’s goal of providing consistent quality patient care. “The efficiency of this new location will help the ER staff and providers better manage the always changing challenge they face.”

According to the TRH media release, the state Department of Health inspected the new ER space prior to and following the upgrades to insure its suitability as an emergency room. The improvements made by McKinstry and contractors mainly addressed bringing the air handling system up to code and adding a room to accommodate highly infectious patients. New equipment including gurneys, defibrillators, crash cart and blanket/fluid warmer had been added.

A waiting room complete with TV and water cooler is across the hallway from the new ER entrance.

Commenting on the improvements, new board commissioner Leslie McNamara said: “We are determined that our community, our district, has the best access to health care possible, and these important improvements to our ER…take a huge step toward meeting our goals in providing that care.”