Department Emergency Services

24 Hours/7 Days a Week

The staff of Emergency Services is committed to providing safe, quality, holistic patient care in a supportive and compassionate manner to all those who present to the department.  The Emergency Department is classified as a Level III service providing a professional staff with advanced training in all aspects of emergency care, including physicians that are Board Certified in Emergency Medicine. These skilled physicians are a contracted service with one member of the group functioning as an active member of the Medical Staff.   Emergency Department Services are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. All age groups from infancy to geriatric are treated in the Emergency Department.  The patient population served includes not only local citizens but also a large seasonal tourist population.

Emergency care is provided through assessment, planning, intervention and evaluation of perceived, actual or potential, sudden or urgent, physical or psychosocial illnesses/injuries that are primarily episodic or acute in nature. 

These illnesses/injuries may require minimal care or life support measures, crisis intervention, patient or significant other education, appropriate referral, admission or transfer, invasive blood pressure monitoring via arterial lines, and knowledge of legal regulations and requirements.

Unique to the Emergency Nurse practice is the application of the nursing process and management of patients of all ages requiring stabilization and /or resuscitation for a variety of illnesses or injuries in uncontrolled or unpredictable environments.

The staff of Emergency Services maintains a close working relationship with the community-based emergency response teams as well as available air transport providers to ensure ease of access for transfer for patients requiring emergent care in another service setting.

Occupational Health services are provided through Emergency Services in conjunction with the Ambulatory Clinic and Laboratory services.  The Occupational Health program assists employers by providing employment physical examinations, drug-testing programs, and treatment for injuries sustained on-the-job.  The efforts of this component of service are aimed at meeting the unique needs of today’s workforce and the companies that employ them.