WellSpan Good Samaritan Hospital in Lebanon, Pa., has opened four renovated emergency department rooms designed for rapid conversion between medical and behavioral health use, LebTown reported Dec. 8.
The rooms were first used in late November after receiving necessary approvals. Each room is equipped with wooden doors that can be locked to conceal medical equipment, allowing staff to quickly adapt the space for patients experiencing a behavioral health crisis.
Tina Citro, DNP, RN, president of Good Samaritan Hospital, said behavioral health crisis visits to WellSpan emergency departments have increased by more than 100% in the last three years, with additional surges during the holiday season.
“Especially in this community, the emergency room is the front door for a lot of our community members,” Dr. Citro told LebTown. “We wanted to make sure that we had this ability to quickly transform these rooms should the need arise between medical and then making that just a safe behavioral health room.”
The renovation was funded by a $1 million grant from the state Department of Human Services, with about $700,000 allocated for the flexible-use rooms, and $300,000 toward three reinforced steel doors that limit unauthorized exits from the area, according to the report.
