Description:

Overworked urban emergency rooms like Rush-Presbyterian-St. Luke's Medical Center must continually enhance efficiency and reduce treatment costs -- a bona fide challenge when you consider that ER visits across the board increased 14 percent between 1997 and 2000. To better serve its significant patient base, Rush decided to expand its already sizeable ER to provide up to 23 hours of patient treatment and observation.

Scheduling both ER and inpatients in the hospital's heavily utilized radiology unit was a related issue in upgrading Rush's facility. Alter+Care President John H. Driscoll, who was responsible for real estate development activities at Rush, developed a plan to relocate a cafeteria adjacent to the urban medical center's existing emergency room to enlarge the space. The ER expanded into the vacated space and today includes a 23-hour observation area and dedicated radiology unit. The phased construction schedule let Rush's active ER function with minimal interruption.

Concurrent cross training of radiology technicians to fill new patient care roles helps the ER function more efficiently. As a result, patient care is faster and more cost-effective.

Contact Information:

John Driscoll
President
Alter+Care
(847) 568-5871
jdriscoll@altergroup.com