Huntington Hospital capped off its centennial anniversary by moving boldly into the future. It hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony Tuesday to unveil its state-of-the-art, $53 million emergency department to meet the community's growing needs.
The ED will not only be larger -- capable of handling 64,000 patient visits per year -- but designed with patient care in mind. Huntington's current emergency department is 12,000 square feet, has 29 treatment areas and currently handles 54,000 patients annually. The new 28,000-square-foot facility, which formally opens on January 3, features 47 treatment spots and 12 private results waiting stations. It will have dedicated areas for Ob/Gyn, behavioral health, trauma and pediatric patients. The new emergency department will also house its own radiology section, including a 128-slice, low-dose CT scanner.
Northwell Health President and CEO Michael Dowling, along with hospital leadership, were on hand for the ribbon cutting ceremony -- as was a patient whose life was saved with the help of the Huntington Hospital emergency department, cardiology team and first responders. Antonin Salajka, 77, of Huntington, suffered a heart attack outside his home in September, and because of technology that Huntington Hospital recently began using, emergency medicine services personnel sent his EKG results directly and securely to the hospital while in transit. That allowed a waiting cardiology team to react quickly. Mr. Salajka required two stents, which were successfully inserted to restore proper blood flow to his heart.
"Huntington Hospital is constantly seeking various avenues, including new facilities and technology, to provide the best care possible for our community," said Gerard Brogan, Jr., MD, executive director of Huntington Hospital. "We look forward to have the capacity and capabilities to better handle all of the patients who seek emergency care at our hospital."
Philanthropic support helped to complete the pediatric emergency department through a $2 million gift from Clark Gillies, a New York Islanders legend; the results waiting area is named for $1 million donors Patricia Petersen of Daniel Gale Sotheby's International Realty and Stanley Gale of Gale International; and Charles and Helen Reichert gave $500,000 toward the emergency department's lobby. Jim and Yvette Loughlin made a gift of $150,000 for the Ob/Gyn room.
The process of helping patients will also undergo transformation. The new emergency department will use a split-flow model, meaning staff triage and assess patients based on the severity of their illness and then funnel them to the appropriate level of treatment.
