The $4 million expansion will add 1,800 square feet, growing the hospital’s ED space to 7,500 square feet. The expanded ED will have an entrance with its own waiting room separate from the main entrance, said Patti Jurkus, CEO of Bedford Memorial Hospital.
The ED will have 14 treatment spaces and 13 cardiac monitors, said Stacey Hopkins, RN, MSN, Bedford Memorial Hospital’s nursing and ED director. The ED will also have two treatment rooms designated for patients with mental health needs.
The hospital hired three nurses, 10 to 12 certified nurses’ assistants and a new switchboard operation staff, Ms. Hopkins said.
EMS personnel will also have more privacy for typing reports to leave at the hospital, said Janet Blankenship, deputy chief of the EMS division of Bedford County Department of Fire and Rescue.
The renovated ED will begin treating patients in mid-February.
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