Two Life-Saving Reasons to Choose Wesley Medical Center
The time to choose a hospital is before you are faced with an emergency. Wesley Medical Center is Hattiesburg’s only Accredited Chest Pain Center and the only area hospital with Accredited Heart Failure Care.
Building on its commitment to become a leader in cardiac care, Wesley Medical Center applied for and was granted full accreditation by The Society of Cardiovascular Patient Care – a designation held by only 12 percent of hospitals in the United States. In addition, Wesley became the first hospital in south Mississippi to be awarded Heart Failure Accreditation. Wesley was the 2nd hospital in Mississippi and the 58th hospital nationwide to earn this distinction.
Minutes Matter
The first signs of a heart attack set off a risk-filled race against time. With each passing minute, the heart muscle is damaged further, and the patient's condition becomes more serious.
When you are experiencing chest pain and possibly having a heart attack, every minute counts. Knowing where to go for the gold standard or emergency cardiac care can be the difference between life and death.
The Society of Cardiovascular Patient Care is a non-profit international society that promotes protocol-based medicine and the adoption of process improvement science by healthcare providers to address heart attacks and acute heart failure. In September 2011, The Society of Cardiovascular Patient Care granted Wesley Medical Center a full three-year Chest Pain Center accreditation.
Accredited Chest Pain Centers undergo a rigorous evaluation process by The Society of Cardiovascular Patient Care based on their ability to assess, diagnose, and treat patients quickly and effectively, clinical outcome statistics and comparisons nationwide.
The goal of Wesley Medical Center is to shorten the time from a patient’s initial cardiac symptoms to treatment. Accredited Chest Pain Centers have been found to reduce the mortality rates of patients suffering from chest pain through a very specific protocol-driven and systematic approach which allows physicians to:
- Treat patients more quickly during the critical early stages of heart attack, when treatments are most effective
- Better monitor patients when it’s not clear whether they are having a coronary event, which ensures that patients are not sent home too early or admitted to the hospital unnecessarily.
This designation means that any patient who comes to Wesley Medical Center experiencing chest pain can be confident he or she is receiving care that meets or exceeds the highest national standards of care.
Heart failure is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the United States. Approximately five million patients in the United States have heart failure. In addition, heart failure patients are responsible for 12 to 15 million physician office visits per year and 6.5 million hospital days. SCPC’s goal is to help facilities manage the heart failure patient more efficiently and improve patient outcomes.
Wesley Medical Center has demonstrated its expertise and commitment to quality patient care by meeting or exceeding a wide set of stringent criteria and undergoing an onsite review by a team of SCPC’s accreditation review specialists. This protocol-driven and systematic approach to patient management allows physicians to reduce time to treatment and to risk stratify patients to decrease their length of stay. Key areas in which a facility with Heart Failure Accreditation must demonstrate expertise include the following:
- Emergency Department Integration with Emergency Medical Services
- Emergency Assessment of Patients with Symptoms of Acute Decompensated Heart Failure-Diagnosis
- Risk Stratification of the Heart Failure Patient
- Treatment for Patients Presenting to the Emergency Department in Heart Failure
- Heart Failure Discharge Criteria from the Emergency Department, Observation Stay or Inpatient Stay
- Heart Failure Patient Education in the Emergency Department, Observation and Inpatient Unit
- Personnel, Competencies and Training
- Process Improvement
- Organizational Structure and Commitment
- Heart Failure Community Outreach
Positive patient outcomes depend on timely intervention, diagnosis and treatment. Cardiologists, emergency department physicians and patient care staff at Wesley Medical Center consistently demonstrate expertise in streamlined diagnosis and treatment, integration with paramedics/EMS, community education and other key factors that ensure better outcomes for patients.
When it comes to your heart, choose Wesley Medical Center for the gold standard in chest pain treatment.
What exactly is the 45-Minutes-or-Less ER Service Pledge?
When patients enter the Emergency Room at Wesley Medical Center, the time of their arrival will be noted. Our pledge is that a clinical professional (physician or nurse practitioner) will work diligently to have our patients initially seen within 45 minutes of their noted arrival.
Does this mean patients will be on their way home in 45 minutes or less?
No. We will work hard to have a provider initially see our patients and begin their evaluation and treatment within 45 minutes of their noted arrival. Depending on the nature of their illness or injury, and the unpredictable volume of patients requiring emergency care at any given time, the wait time and duration of each visit will vary.
How is the timeframe of patients’ visits documented for this pledge?
When a patient arrives and checks in, the time of arrival will be noted. When the provider initially sees the patient, the time will be documented by the Emergency Room staff.
Is a 45-Minutes-or-Less ER Service Pledge really necessary for an emergency room?
In many emergency rooms across the country, wait times have been increasing. We want to assure our patients that we are dedicated to not only offering quality care but also to working diligently to provide that care as efficiently as possible.
When do the 45 minutes officially start?
The 45 minutes start when the patient checks in with our staff at the Emergency Room desk.
Does the 45-Minutes-or-Less ER Service Pledge affect how patients are prioritized?
While the goal is to initially see every patient within 45 minutes of their noted arrival, the most severe cases will always receive immediate attention.
How can the Emergency Room maintain quality care if speed is the priority?
It is not our objective now, nor will it ever be, to “rush” patients through the Emergency Room. Our process improvements have been focused on getting patients into a room as quickly as possible and enabling the clinical professional to initially see a patient and begin their diagnosis and treatment in a timely manner.
Is the 45-Minutes-or-Less ER Service Pledge in effect at all times and does it apply to all ages – infants to senior citizens?
Yes.
Do I have to wait up to 45 minutes for someone to say, “May I help you?”
Absolutely not. Emergency Room staff will greet you as soon as you come in, and a nurse will assess your condition through a triage process. We know your time is valuable and we pledge to work diligently to have a provider initially see you within 45 minutes of your noted arrival.
Does this cost more?
No.
If you are experiencing a medical emergency, call 9-1-1. The ER wait time represents the time it takes from arrival until a patient is initially seen by a physician or nurse practitioner. Patients are triaged upon their arrival in the ER. They are then seen by a provider in an order based on their complaint, condition, and the reason for their visit. While many patients are initially seen by a clinical professional within 45 minutes of their arrival, during some peak times when the number of patients and/or trauma situations exceeds the number of providers or beds, some patients are not initially seen within 45 minutes of their noted arrival. Should you have any additional questions about the 45-Minutes-or-Less ER Service Pledge, please ask any of our Emergency Room staff.
Get Seen Faster.
Fast-Track - Only at Wesley Medical Center
Fast-Track is a feature of the Wesley Medical Center Emergency Room designed with our patients in mind. From 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. every day, patients seeking non-urgent minor care can visit the Wesley Emergency Room and get seen faster. From cuts to colds and minor injuries, get on the Fast-Track to better health—only at Wesley.
The Wesley Fast-Track is open daily from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Make it your first choice for non-urgent minor care.
Comfort and Care. Not Chaos. Experience the Difference of the Wesley Medical Center ER.
From a broken bone to a stroke, when you are in an emergency situation, you want to be surrounded by people you trust, those you know you can count on to help heal and comfort you—all in an environment that’s calm, not chaotic. That’s the difference of the Wesley Medical Center ER. Our team of professionals treats minor injuries and illnesses with the same skill and compassion as they do those that are more serious. In any emergency situation, you want the best for yourself and your family—so do we. For any emergency, choose Wesley.
Emergency Information
The Wesley ER is open 24 hours a day and is located in the main hospital building.
The Wesley ER Difference
- Spacious, comfortable and well equipped facility
- Walls and a door in every exam room for quiet and privacy—no curtains!
- Five Fast-Track rooms for quicker response to minor emergencies
- A dedicated cardiac treatment room
- A dedicated room for obstetrical emergencies
- An ear, nose and throat exam room