Bariatric Emergency Room Improves Care for Patients and Staff
September 21, 2014Hospitals across the country are creating specialized bariatric emergency room treatment areas to better accommodate patients affected by obesity. In addition, to improved care for patients, the specialized areas will also protect staff when lifting and moving patients. The treatment rooms are equipped with larger beds, floor mounted toilets, high capacity scales, and lifts that can hold up to 1000 pounds.
"Every hospital will get these larger patients, either due to an emergency such as a heart attack, or a scheduled admission for surgery." Dr. Raul Rosenthal, an officer of the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than a third of all adults are affected by obesity meaning they have a body mass index (BMI) greater than 30. Nearly 15 percent of all American adults have a BMI over 40, which classifies them as morbidly or severely obese. St. Joseph's Hospital, in Tampa, Florida estimates their ER sees at least one 400 pound patient a week, but they have treated patients weighing as much as 600 pounds.
"To be prepared and treat the patient with dignity … is the right thing." - Patricia Donnelly, VP of Patient Care Services, St. Joseph's Hospital
In the past decade, as the number of individuals undergoing bariactric surgery has increased, so has the need for hospitals to renovate their facilities to accommodate larger patients. Accommodations include, wider operating room tables, longer needles to draw blood and start IVs, and wider wheelchairs. While some hospitals initially respond to the demand by renting equipment as needed, guidelines have been created so that all newly built facilities meet certain requirements. Some states, such as Florida, require all new hospital projects to incorporate these features to accommodate larger patients.
There is a higher price tag associated with specialized equipment. A bariatric ER treatment room can cost $55,000 to equip verses only $24,000 for a regular ER room. Most of the costs are associated with the larger bariatric hospital beds which can costs upwards of $32,000. However, it is easier and less expensive to have accommodation part of the original building plans instead of attempting to retrofit or renovate facilities at a later date. Some hospitals are faced with the reality that their elevator doors are not wide enough for bariatric beds to fit through, requiring a complex and expensive renovation.
In addition to larger beds, and sturdier equipment, some hospitals are also improving patient care by training staff to be more empathetic to patients affected by obesity. Earlier this year a hospital in the UK began using fat suits as a part of staff training, not only to learn safer methods of lifting and moving patients, but to give staff members a sense of how patients feels.
Photo: Michael Macor, The Chronicle
Source: Tillman, Jodie. "Hospitals equip to serve severely obese patients." Tampa Bay Times 5 August 2014.
