Emergency Medicine
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Emergencies happen when we least expect them and require fast action. When an injury or sudden illness occurs, it is important to seek out high-quality medical care – fast. As always, in a critical emergency situation, immediately dial 911. For other circumstances when medical care is immediately necessary, MeritCare offers the Emergency Center.
Timing of Emergency Care
When you arrive you will be greeted by an experienced member of the Emergency Center team who will evaluate your condition utilizing the Emergency Severity Index system. It is important that the most seriously ill/ injured patients be treated first. Patients are seen based on priority of their condition, not on a first-come-first-serve basis.
The MeritCare Emergency Center treats over 45,000 patients per year. As patients are seen based on the severity of the medical emergency, we apologize for not being able to take all patients to an exam room immediately. Please understand that our nurse has assessed your condition and determined the priority of care based on the assessment. If your condition changes or you feel worse, please let the nurse know. We will do our very best to have you seen by a doctor as quickly as we can.
Services
- Level II Trauma Center
- Pediatric Emergency and Trauma Services
- Adult and Child Psychiatric Emergency Service
- Health and Injury Prevention Education
- First aid services at community events upon request and availability of resources
LifeFlight
The events that occur during the first hour after a health tragedy significantly impact survival. This period is referred to as the "golden hour." The golden hour is the time when MeritCare LifeFlight plays its most vital role. MeritCare LifeFlight is MeritCare Medical Center's sophisticated "flying intensive care unit." It is dedicated to advanced treatment and transportation.
Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE) Program
The mission of the SANE program is to strive to meet the immediate medical and forensic needs of sexual assault victims in our community while providing professional, compassionate care. Many of our registered nurses have been trained in this program and one of them is on call 24/7 to provide care and collect evidence for sexual assault victims.
Treatment
At the Emergency Center, you will be treated by one of 13 experienced emergency doctors who work exclusively for MeritCare in emergency medicine. Our staff also includes over 70 registered nurses and 30 assistive staff. Our registered nurses receive the following educational preparation for their roles:
- Basic Life Support
- Advanced Cardiac Life Support
- Trauma Nurse Core Course
- Concepts in Advanced Trauma Nursing
- Emergency Nurse Pediatric Course
- Hazmat Awareness Education
- Non-violent Crisis Intervention
- Triage Course
Health Library
Learn more about what you can to do prior to an emergency in the health library.
Walk-In or ER?
Not sure when to go to the Emergency Center? Use these guidelines to help you decide.