Freestanding Emergency Department
Construction workers continue progress on the entrance to the Medical West freestanding emergency department. Photo by Marienne Thomas Ogle.
All is a go for the mid-May opening of Hoover’s first emergency services facility, the Medical West freestanding emergency department (FED) on Highway 150 at I-459. The facility will start seeing patients on May 5 at 7 a.m.
An affiliate of UAB and the first of its kind in the state, the 24,342-square-foot FED will offer 10 exam rooms, including two trauma rooms. The FED will also provide various outpatient services including CT scan, digital X-ray, general and vascular ultrasound, EKG and a full-service lab. In addition to emergency imaging, the radiology services will be available for outpatient appointments through physician referral. The property, located next to the Crossings of Hoover shopping center, will also have a helipad for emergency transport. According to Nathan Clark, director of business development for Medical West, the 50-member staff will include experienced ER registered nurses, respiratory therapists, imaging and lab techs, patient access representatives and a mix of patient care assistants. One ER doctor plus a physician assistant or nurse practitioner will be present for every shift, 24 hours every day.
“One of the most important things we want residents of this area to know is that the FED will operate exactly like our emergency room on the hospital campus,” Clark said. “We are fully equipped for emergency situations, and if you are in such a situation where you would typically go to the hospital ER, then now you can go to the FED in your neighborhood.”
Hoover Mayor Gary Ivey said the location and accessibility of the FED can make all the difference to residents and those traveling in and through the area.
“They are projecting that this facility could handle up to 20,000 patients in the first year, and the big thing going on here is that it will save lives,” Ivey said. “Whether bicycle or golf cart wrecks, or motorcycle and, of course, car wrecks, time is of the essence, and with the traffic the Hoover area experiences, response time is vital.”
The construction of the $13.5 million Hoover FED coincides with the recently completed $15 million renovation of Medical West Hospital in Bessemer and is one of 14 of the hospital’s satellite locations, Clark said.
“We strongly believe that people who utilize the FED will discover the difference of Medical West,” Clark said. “We strive to cultivate a community atmosphere with a high touch, yet high tech, environment.”
