Expanded Emergency Care Options Close to Home
Although the city of Azle may cover fewer miles on a map than some other areas, don’t let its size fool you. Take a closer look at this close-knit community and you will find giant seeds of growth sprouting in big ways at Texas Health Azle.
Oct. 31 marked the finish date for a construction project at the hospital that added 1,300 square feet to the Emergency Department (ED). The 43 percent increase in ED space is accompanied by the construction and relocation of a new laboratory between the health and education building and the main hospital. The move allows the ED to expand into the lab’s former space, adding five beds for a total of 12 to accommodate the 24,000 patients it serves each year.
The total cost of Azle’s ED renovation plus construction and relocation of the lab is $1.9 million.
“I’ve been the director here since 2012 and I have advocated for more beds since the day I started,” said Robert Potter, director of Emergency Services.
“I never want anybody to go without being seen. This will help to solve that. It’s our mission to provide health care to our community and now we can do that more efficiently.”
Before the expansion, Robert was able to lower the “left without being seen rate” to under three percent by utilizing the space directly above the ED to fast-track non-emergent patients.
“The only problem was that every time a doctor or a nurse had to leave the main ER to go back and forth between patients it might add five to 10 extra minutes just running up and down the stairs. When there are over 10 to 15 patients in the waiting room, that adds up,” Robert said.
The expansion is expected to increase overall throughput, decrease variability in wait time and help provide caregivers more flexibility to spend time with their patients.
Last year the community and physicians on the medical staff raised more than $225,000 towards the expansion project at the 2017 Levi’s and Lace Gala.
“Without the support of the community and ER doctors who donated, we would never have been able to move forward to finish this project. Azle really came through on this one,” Robert said.
A community-wide open house is scheduled for 4-6 p.m., Nov. 1. The event is open to the public. The Azle Chamber of Commerce will be present for a ribbon-cutting.
“Texas Health Azle has been successful for several years in introducing creative alternative programs that have curbed the growth in Emergency Department visits; however, with the rapid population growth of Azle and our surrounding service area, utilization of the Emergency Department continues to grow,” said Bob Ellzey, president of Texas Health Azle.
“This expansion helps us to better meet our current demand as well as prepare for continued growth in the future.”
