Emergency department expansion at Sacramento Kaiser Permanente hospital debuts early
Bowing to concerns about the spread of COVID-19, Kaiser Permanente unveiled an expanded emergency department Monday at its Sacramento Medical Center through a real-time video tour on Twitter.
“Just like everything else in 2020, this ribbon-cutting ceremony is a little bit different than those we have held in the past,” said Sandy Sharon, Kaiser Permanente Sacramento senior vice president and area manager. “Typically, we would all be gathered together in person, celebrating the latest addition to our medical center and personally thanking the countless people who have made this day possible, but instead we want to thank you for joining us virtually and most importantly safely for our live-stream celebration.”
The Sacramento Medical Center, 2025 Morse Ave., nearly doubles the square footage that the ER department previously had while increasing capacity from 36 private exam rooms to 59.
The expansion opened two months ahead of time, Sharon said, ensuring the hospital can accommodate a surge of patients, if need be, amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Dr. Rob Azevedo, the hospital’s physician-in-chief, said the company was five months into construction when the new coronavirus hit the United States.
“It became clear we needed to move our timeline up, given what was going on around us,” he said, “so our construction partners worked with our clinical teams and really created miracles to get this done.”
The 55-year-old hospital’s existing emergency department was one of the busiest in Northern California, Azevedo said, serving roughly 115,000 patients last year. The ER will now be connected to the new addition by a 2,400-square-foot walkway.
As Sharon and Azevedo went to cut the ribbon and invite viewers into the facility, he met with a dull pair of scissors that slowed him down. But he borrowed Sharon’s shears to get the job done.
Inside the new ER, Azevedo, other physicians and staff showed off exam rooms that have an array of equipment and sliding glass doors for privacy, and there are rooms set aside for children, for people who have infectious diseases and for patients with special needs.
“We can give our patients the isolation and privacy that they deserve,” said Dr. Vinh Le, the chief of the hospital’s emergency department. “We have more space so that we can actually include family members in patients’ care. At the same time, we can also observe social distancing.”
Hillary Mitchell, an associate medical group administrator, noted that nurses’ stations have been strategically placed to ensure that registered nurses will have a line of sight to their patients. Physicians also will have work rooms where they can confer with each other and with consultants.
The Kaiser team also showed off nearly 60 pieces of artwork that they said are intended to foster a sense of peace and calm. Sacramento-based artist Maren Conrad painted a large wall mural with images of a certain golden ridge and a number of other well-known Sacramento landmarks.
But Brandie Cherry, director of the Sacramento Medical Center’s emergency department, also chose to feature two photos taken by Kaiser registered nurse James Mims.
Mims described them in the video: “One is a black-and-white picture of the Tower Theatre next to the mural, and I feel really honored to be able to contribute such an iconic piece of Sacramento history to this project. The other piece is of a very big tree from Easter Island. I was traveling and exploring the island, and as I was driving, this big tree came out of no where and had it’s own energy — massive, majestic. I wanted to capture a sense of that beauty and awe.”
