What to Expect in Our Emergency Room
Adventist Health Portland’s Emergency Department
Our emergency room is designed to ensure the best and fastest care possible. While each patient is important to us, we have to make sure life-threatening emergencies are handled first.
That’s why it’s good to visit your primary care physician or one of our urgent care clinics for any nonemergency conditions you have. When you do come to the emergency room, here’s what you can expect during your visit.
Triage: How we prioritize emergency patients
Our emergency room is organized and staffed to take care of all your emergency medical needs. That means finding out what brought you to us is our first concern!
Because we see patients based on the severity of their emergency, you may see some patients who arrive after you being treated first. Even if someone else needs treatment first, we really do care about seeing and treating you as soon as we possibly can.
Checking in: How treatment begins
- A patient care greeter will ask you to fill out a short questionnaire about your symptoms and what other medical problems you have.
- You will be evaluated by an experienced triage nurse. They will ask brief but important questions about your medical history. You’ll also be briefly examined to check the severity of your condition. The triage nurse may even order lab tests or X-rays that have been preapproved by physician guidelines to speed up your care.
- A registration clerk will also meet with you. They get important information for our records, including your signature on a consent form so we can provide your medical care.
Treatment: When and where
Your health and well-being are most important to us. That’s why your treatment may officially begin with our triage nurse.
Depending on the severity of your symptoms, you may be taken immediately to a private treatment room or be asked to wait in our comfortable lobby until a room becomes available. Lab tests and X-rays may be done even while you're waiting for a private room.
After your test results are completed, the physician will meet with you. A physician specialist may be consulted to help in your care. Depending on what they find, you may be treated and sent home to follow up with your regular physician.
If you need to be admitted to the hospital, we will arrange a bed in the right department. While you’re waiting to be moved, our emergency staff will continue to take care of you.
Discharge: How we get you home
If you are sent home from the ER, you will be given instructions regarding your diagnosis and treatment. Knowing what to do when you leave and what to expect next is very important. We may contact your regular physician about your emergency visit so they can take over your follow-up care.
If you do not have a physician, we can help! We’ll give you the name of a physician from our on-call list for a follow-up office visit.
Satisfaction: Helping us know how we are doing
Please do not hesitate to ask your physician or nurse if you have questions about your care or the care of your family member. Any time you’re not satisfied, speak with our nurse administrator. We’re here to help.
After your visit, you may receive a patient satisfaction survey in the mail. We appreciate your taking a few moments to fill it out. Your input helps us improve our services and understand our community's needs.
We take pleasure and pride in serving you, so let us know how we can do even better.