Accreditation recognizes the excellent standard of emergency care provided to patients 65 years of age and older
The Emergency Department at Richmond University Medical Center (RUMC) has earned Geriatric Emergency Department Accreditation (GEDA) from the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP). This 3-year national accreditation affirms RUMC has the appropriate equipment and properly trained medical personnel to provide emergency care to patients 65 years of age and older. Patients in this age group often require special care due to their age and/or present with specific age-related conditions, illnesses and/or injuries when arriving in the emergency department.
“This accreditation is recognition of the great care we currently provide in our emergency department,” Chair of RUMC’s Emergency Medicine Department, Johnathon LeBaron, DO, said. “It indicates that we are better informed and prepared to deal with the unique challenges presented by geriatric patients. From this knowledge, we are better equipped to treat them and return them to a safe, healing environment in the community.”
To achieve accreditation, RUMC met strict ACEP guidelines intended to improve patient outcomes; provide standardized approaches to care that address common geriatric issues; and ensure ideal coordination between the emergency medicine department and other care settings including inpatient units within the hospital, home-based or community-based care providers, and/or rehabilitation and long-term care facilities. Each year, nearly 60,000 people are cared for in RUMC’s Emergency Department, of which close to 20% are geriatric patients.
Additional measures RUMC has taken to ensure geriatric patients receive optimal care in the Emergency Department include inter-disciplinary geriatric education for staff; increased screenings for conditions such as delirium, dementia, and fall risk, among other vulnerabilities frequently presented by geriatric patients; and having geriatric appropriate equipment and supplies available such as hearing assistive devices, reading glasses, and walking/mobility aids.
The GEDA program was launched by the ACEP with support from the Gary and Mary West Health Institute and John A. Hartford Foundation. The program recognizes emergency departments that provide excellent care for older adults. Including RUMC, just over 40 healthcare facilities across New York State have GEDA accreditation, of which less than 20 are located in New York City.
Just last month, RUMC began treating patients in its new state-of-the-art 35,000 sq. ft. Emergency Department. Named for former Staten Island Borough President and hospital trustee James P. Molinaro, the new Emergency Department features expanded trauma and triage areas, and dedicated units for pediatrics, cardiac/stroke emergencies, sexual assault victims, and more. The new Emergency Department also has increased ambulance bays and a larger patient drop off area at the main entrance. Throughout the Emergency Department, patients are receiving care from experienced physicians and medical personnel assigned to RUMC and the Mount Sinai Health System. The new Emergency Department is more than double the size of RUMC’s previous department, built back in 1978.
RUMC is an American College of Surgeons (ACS) and New York State Department of Health designated Level I Adult Trauma and Level II Pediatric Trauma Center, meaning RUMC has trained medical staff, nurses, equipment, and protocols in place to treat all adult and pediatric patients in need of emergency care. RUMC is also a nationally recognized stoke center, Staten Island’s only provider of inpatient behavioral health services for adolescents, and the borough’s only New York State Department of Health certified Sexual Assault Forensic Examiner (SAFE) Center of Excellence. RUMC was also recently recognized as a High Performing Hospital by US News and World Report for its expertise in treating COPD, heart failure and kidney failure.
Richmond University Medical Center is a not-for-profit healthcare provider serving the ethnically diverse community of Staten Island and its neighbors. The medical center provides premier-quality patient care through a full spectrum of emergent, acute, primary, behavioral health and educational services. RUMC does this in an environment that promotes the highest satisfaction among patients, families, physicians and staff. For more information call 1-718-818-1234 or visit www.rumcsi.org. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter.
