DePaul Renovation Will Double ER Capacity

SSM DePaul Health Center will spend $7.2 million to renovate its emergency room and meet the growing demand from the communities it serves.  The existing ER (a level II trauma center and the only remaining trauma center in North County) has been treating as many as 50,000 patients a year, when it was built to accommodate 35,000.  When these renovations are completed, the ER will double its capacity and be able to handle 70,000 patients a year. 

The project involves redesigning the existing ER space and building out to the north, adding 5,500 square feet of new space.  The emergency entrance and nurse’s station will be redesigned.  A new ambulance entrance, waiting room, triage, work space for paramedics and additional patient rooms will all be built.  There will also be a new staging area to serve patients in the event of a disaster. 

Construction is set to begin in January 2007 and should take 15 months.  The ER will remain open during that time.  The $7.2 million project is being funded by SSM.  DePaul is still trying to determine how many new physicians, nurses, technicians and other staff will be needed when the project is finished. 

The hospital also recently opened a new eight-bed chest pain center in the Emergency Department.  That was the first phase in this major renovation project.  DePaul currently cares for 3,500 patients who present with chest pain on an annual basis.  A dedicated chest pain unit provides the opportunity to create a setting where cardiologists, nurses and ancillary staff are devoted to the management of chest pain.

For more information or to schedule an interview, please call Jamie Newell at 314-344-7509.