Emergency Care

Care When You Need It Most

When you need emergency care, every minute counts. That’s why the Emergency Department at NYC Health + Hospitals/Queens stands ready 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to provide high quality, patient-centered, efficient and compassionate care. Our staff of highly qualified emergency-trained physicians, nurses and ancillary staff provide a full spectrum of care for both adults and children – ranging from treatment of minor illnesses and injuries, to life-saving specialty care. Our staff is certified in Basic and Advanced Life Support, Advanced Trauma Life Support and Pediatric Advanced Life Support. Surpassing the national norms, over one-third of our registered nurses are Certified Emergency Nurses and our department is staffed and supervised by Board Certified residency-trained emergency physicians.

In recent years, despite the challenges offered by nearby hospital closures, NYC Health + Hospitals/Queens Emergency Department (ED) has been quick to adapt to our changing environment, and these efforts and successes have been recognized nationwide in recent years. Our ED recently received a national “T-System Excellence Award” for productivity and efficiency. Along these lines, when NYC Health + Hospitals/Queens received a Citation of Merit from the American Hospital Association-McKesson Quest for Quality Prize, they cited our commitment to cultural competency and equity, and specifically our impressive “work on timeliness in the ED.” In 2011, our director was one of three individuals in the nation named as “ED Director of the Year” by the Emergency Medicine Foundation/Blue Jay Consulting Group. Just last year, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services awarded our ED with an Innovations grant to foster and grow our model Emergency Department Care Management program, which seeks to support patients presenting to the ED with conditions that are best managed in primary care settings, and involves patient education, medication management, connections to primary care providers, as well as longer term follow up for high risk patients.

Services include:

• Full time board certified emergency medicine physician staff
• Advanced cardiovascular life support (ACLS) trained registered nurses
• Advanced diagnostic and treatment capabilities including laboratory tests, x-rays, ultrasound, CT, angiography
• 24/7 rapid HIV testing
• Dedicated SAFE (Sexual Assault Forensic Exam) Room and coverage by SAFE-trained personnel
• Negative-pressure isolation rooms for communicable illnesses
• Urgent Care Center for minor injury and illness
• Acute Care area to receive EMS notifications and other critically ill patients
• Emergency Department ultrasound capabilities

When you arrive at our Emergency Department, trained triage personnel will perform a basic assessment of symptoms to determine the severity and acuity of the illness or injury. How quickly you are seen depends on this assessment. Life-threatening conditions are taken directly into the Emergency Department for further evaluation and treatment. Patients with illnesses or injuries identified as not life-threatening may have to wait while more serious cases are treated. Our priority is safety first so the sickest patients will be seen first.

Because children have unique medical problems and may have different symptoms than adults, we have a separate Pediatric Emergency Department staffed with trained pediatricians and nurses, and a special waiting room with child-friendly décor.

The current Emergency Department was opened in 2002 and designed to accommodate approximately 45,000 visits per year. The five hospital closures in Queens County in recent years have resulted in more than doubling our Emergency patient volume. NYC Health + Hospitals/Queens is getting ready to break ground on a $3.5 million expansion project which will add approximately 26 additional adult treatment areas, increase our capacity and improve on our ability to quickly isolate any highly contagious patients.

What to expect

A visit to the Emergency Department can be stressful for both patients and their families especially when you or your loved one is ill or injured and the ED is very busy. Our goal is to make your visit as efficient as possible. If the triage staff determines that you need immediate medical care, you will be taken directly into the Emergency Room. Otherwise, your assessment will be completed and you will be directed to the registration clerk who will enter information into a medical record such as information about your primary care physician, family medical history, contact information, employer and health insurance.

What should you have with you?

If you have time, bring these items with you. It will help us help you more quickly.

• Medications – medications you are taking or a list of your current medications. Include prescription medicines, over-the-counter medicines (aspirin, etc.), vitamins and any herbal products.
• Identification – driver’s license, passport, etc.
• Insurance Cards
• Preferred pharmacy – in most cases we may be able to send your prescription(s) electronically
• Medical equipment such as a walker or a cane

Rest assured that even if you are unable to bring any of the above items, you will never be turned away from our emergency department if you come to us seeking medical care.

Can my family stay with me?

It’s up to you. Loved ones are welcome if you want them there. At selected times, the medical team may ask them to wait in the waiting room if for example the staff needs more room to work, or if they have something sensitive to speak with you about, because your privacy is important to us.

How will my family know what’s happening?

If we have your permission, a member of our medical team will advise your loved ones as to how you are doing. If you can’t give permission, a member of our staff will speak with your next-of-kin or designated health care proxy.

What happens after my visit to the Emergency Department?

Once a diagnosis is made and a course of treatment prescribed, it is essential that you understand your discharge instructions. They will be explained to you in detail with the appropriate follow-up care. If you do not understand the instructions or have any questions, please ask. Once you leave the Emergency Department, you are responsible for your own care. We will make sure you have all your results from the visit to bring to your primary physician when you follow up. We also have social workers and care managers assigned to our Emergency Department who will work with you if you need help getting safely back home, and generally to make sure the transition from the hospital setting to your home goes smoothly.

If you need assistance at any time, please Speak Up!

NYC Health + Hospitals/Queens admits and treats all patients without regard to race, religion, sex, age, disability or ability to pay.