Emergency Room Care

You will follow several steps and meet many people along the way in your Emergency Department (ED) visit.

Triage

First, you will be greeted by a triage nurse who is trained and experienced in emergency care. If you need translation assistance, please inform the nurse. Also mention if your child’s primary care physician has directed you to the ED as your physician may have alerted us already.

The nurse will quickly assess your child’s condition, evaluating your child’s symptoms, medical history, vital signs, etc. The triage nurse will then prioritize your child’s medical needs based on the severity of their medical condition and determine whether your child will be seen in the Main Emergency Department or Fast Track. Fast Track is a service that allows patients with acute non-life threatening conditions to be treated more efficiently and then released.  This section has its own waiting area.

Our Emergency Department team is committed to providing high-quality emergency care as quickly as possible to all patients. A staff member routinely updates parents in our waiting room about wait times.

Registration and Rooming

Registration is where the necessary paperwork is completed by a patient service representative. If an exam room is available, you and your child will be taken there directly and registered at the bedside. If all exam rooms are occupied, you will register in the front of the ED area. Please refrain from cell phone usage during registration.

A member of our team will start your child’s chart and have you sign a consent form for treatment. You will also need to provide health insurance information and identification during registration. You will be given a pager so that you can be reached when it is your child’s turn to be seen. The pager will notify you as long as you are within the ED area limits. It will not reach outside the hospital.

Waiting Area

If you and your child do not go directly to an exam room, you will be asked to wait in the Waiting Area. If your child’s condition changes while you are waiting, please inform the triage nurse. When the pager goes off or your name is called, your exam room is ready.  Please return the pager to the staff at the front desk.

The wait may be longer during busy times because the attending physician sees every patient. Please be considerate of others and understand the order in which we need to see patients. The digital signs in the waiting areas may be able to help answer some of your questions.

During your wait, your children may watch television and use the computers, but for their safety we ask that you don’t allow them to stand in the wagons, jump on seats or stand on the tables. Please ask if there are any restrictions before giving food or drink to them while in the waiting area.

Exam Room

The next step of the visit is the exam. Your child will be seen by the primary nurse (the nurse who will take care of your child during the visit) and the attending physician (a doctor who has primary responsibility for the care of your child). He or she is a trained, board certified pediatric emergency medicine specialist.  In the Fast Track area the attending physician may be a board certified general pediatrician or a pediatric emergency specialist.

Your child may also be seen by a resident, a doctor who is training in a medical specialty, or a fellow, a doctor who has completed residency and is obtaining clinical training in pediatric emergency medicine. In addition, patients may be evaluated by advanced practice nurses and physician assistants.  These providers have specialized training in the acute care of children.

While you are in the exam room, you may use your cell phone and laptop.   You will be given information about the cafeteria and snack bar hours. 

Your child will receive the appropriate exam, treatment, and diagnostic tests. Please keep in mind that some tests require time for accurate results. If your child is being released, a nurse will review instructions for home care, medications and follow-up treatment. If necessary, your child will be admitted to the hospital.  The ED recently opened a new Observation Unit for children requiring admission for short-term illness.

Check Out

Once you have received instructions, you will be directed to Check Out where you will receive the names of your treatment team and contact information. The staff will officially discharge your child, and in some cases set follow-up appointments.

After the Visit

After several days you may receive a follow-up phone call to ask how your child is recovering and answer any of your questions.

Please complete and return the patient satisfaction survey you receive in the mail. We want to ensure you are pleased with your child’s care at Nemours.