Clinical Services

Emergency care provided by Department of Emergency Medicine faculty consists of critical care, emergency care and minor care. The Emergency Department treats all patients 18 years of age and older with acute illnesses and injuries. In calendar year 2006, 54,000 patients were treated in the Emergency Department by full-time Medical College of Wisconsin Emergency Medicine faculty.

Patients enter the Emergency Department by various routes including ambulatory, ambulance, and aeromedical transport. Upon arrival, patients are assessed and assigned a triage code based on a nationally validated severity index (Emergency Severity Index or ESI). ESI levels range on a scale of 1-5, with ESI 1 representing an acute life or limb threatening condition and ESI 5 representing a very minor condition. ESI levels are assigned based upon nationally recognized criteria that assess resource needs for each patient.

The Emergency Department's physical plant consists of a state of the art 38 bed clinical care area. This physical plant was completed in November of 2007 and represents a patient centric approach to emergency care. The department is divided into 3 clinical care areas.   The main emergency department consists of 4 "teams" for a total of 28 beds. There is also a 4 bed resuscitation suite and a 6 bed minor care area. The department is also equipped with two digital radiology suites, a 64 slice CT scanner with control and reading room and a decontamination area adjacent to the ambulance bay. Each patient room in the Emergency Department is considered "universal" and contains all supplies and equipment (monitors etc.) to care for all patients. Each room has an in room computer for documentation on the electronic health care record. In addition, each clinical workspace has static computer workstations for documenting in the clinical record along with viewing radiologic images on our PACS system.

The Emergency Department is staffed 24 hours a day by board certified/board eligible, emergency physicians who are faculty members of the Medical College of Wisconsin. Faculty double coverage occurs daily from 0700-0100. Nurse staffing ranges from 8 to 11 nurses depending on the time of day. All nursing staff are Advanced Cardiac Life Support certified with a minimum of two years experience.

The Emergency Department of Froedtert Hospital serves as the main clinical teaching site for the emergency medicine residency training program. Second-year and third-year emergency medicine residents are present in the emergency department 24 hours a day. First-year emergency medicine residents along with rotating residents and medical students are present during selected hours. The emergency medicine faculty provide bedside supervision of all clinical care of patients, 24 hours a day.

Other Special Clinical Services

Trauma Care

In collaboration with the Department of Surgery's Division of Trauma & Critical Care faculty and residents, the Department of Emergency medicine's faculty and residents provide 24 hour-a-day initial care to critically injured patients transported to Froedtert Memorial Lutheran Hospital's verified Level 1 Trauma Center. 

Minor Care

The Department of Emergency Medicine runs a minor care area from 0900-2100 daily. This area is part of the physical plant of the emergency department and care is provided by midlevel providers (physicians assistants and advanced nurse practitioners). The care provided is supervised by emergency medicine faculty.