Raleigh Community Hospital opened its doors to a newly expanded Emergency Department on Thursday, December 6th. Physicians and hospital staff came to the Open House from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. to see renovations that nearly doubled the ED square footage.

Open House visitors walked through the newest additions to the department which included larger, private patient rooms; two specially designed cardiac rooms; increased space for physician documentation; all monitored beds; a psychiatric room and a new decontamination suite. "We also have a state-of-the-art nurse call system that allows us to locate staff at all times," said Linda Patrone, Emergency Department Director at RCH.

Medical Director of the Emergency Department, Dr. John Kelsh, said the expansion is a result of rapid growth and development at RCH. "It is exciting for us to be a part of a hospital that's interested in growing. The newer, better-equipped space allows us to keep pace with the increasing demand we're seeing."

A year-long project at RCH, the newer space can easily accommodate the more than 30,000 patients visiting the ED each year. "We have increased our bed capacity to 13 acute and five minor treatment rooms," said Patrone.

Kelsh said increasing patient numbers make Emergency Room overcrowding a continuing battle. "We're already planning for the future development of the department. In five or ten years, we're projecting about 48,000 patients a year," he said.

Although parts of the Emergency Department have remained operational during construction, the department was fully completed and opened in late November. "These improvements and additions will significantly help us in our continued efforts to better serve our steadily increasing number of patients and our medical staff," Kelsh said. "The renovation also demonstrates this hospital's, as well as Duke's emphasis on emergency medicine."

Raleigh Community Hospital is a 205-bed acute-care facility located one block north of the beltline on Wake Forest Road in North Raleigh. Raleigh Community Hospital is part of the Duke University Health System. A full-service acute care hospital, RCH's range of services includes the Diabetes Treatment Center, a 24-hour Emergency Department, Intensive and Critical Care, Child Birth Center, Rehabilitation, Newborn Hearing Screening, Senior Health Center and community education.