Emergency Services
For people who find themselves faced with an emergency healthcare situation, your needs are the top priority for TriStar Horizon’s Emergency Department staff. Our modern, 26-bed emergency center provides a high level of acute care 24 hours a day, seven days a week. We are prepared and trained for a wide variety of medical conditions. Almost 38,000 (we should hit 40,000 this yr) patients come to us for their emergency needs each year.
The Emergency Department at TriStar Horizon includes:- Rapid assessments of patients with heart attack symptoms as well as the latest in heart care including clot-busting agents (clot busting agents are no longer the standard of care – we have a Code STEMI process to transfer you to cath lab when our cath lab is closed)
- Rapid assessments of cardiac disease and trauma
- Dickson County’s only Accredited Chest Pain Center
- Expert treatment for patients of all ages, from children to older adults (we are a designated basic pediatric facility by state guidelines)
- Convenient bedside registration to reduce wait times
- A "Fast Track" service to treat minor injuries or illnesses
- Highly trained and skilled medical staff, including board-certified emergency physicians, registered nurses, physician’s assistants and nurse practitioners, (paramedics and EMTs) and consulting physicians representing more than 30 medical specialties
- The most advanced technologies, including filmless xray technology that allows the radiologist and physician to view test results simultaneously
- A helipad for air ambulances
What is Fast Track (We call this ED Overflow)?
Did you know the Emergency Department at TriStar Horizon includes a location where injuries and illnesses of less serious nature can be segregated and patients seen and discharged quicker?
This area, known as Fast Track (ED overflow), includes three (10) exam rooms staffed by 1-2 Physician Assistant/Nurse Practitioners and 1-2 nurses and a paramedic or EMT. Once the triage nurse reviews a patient’s presenting problem and vital signs, he or she determines that patient is eligible for Fast Track ED Overflow. Fast Track ED Overflow is open from 11a-11p on most days and is directly adjacent to the ER. Patients can easily be moved into the main ER if it becomes necessary and all patients in Fast Track ED Overflow have direct access to the full extent of hospital services without some of the limitations faced by free standing urgent care clinics. Care is provided by an ER Physician Assistant (PA) or Nurse Practitioner and supervised by an ER Physician. The average length of stay in our Fast Track ED Overflow is 79 minutes, with most cases in and out within an hour. If you or your loved one needs Emergency Services, TriStar Horizon can meet your needs from minor to the most serious.
The Emergency Room is not a replacement for your primary care physician. Please see your family doctor regularly for minor injuries or illnesses. In a true emergency, dial 911.
Cardiac care
We continue to work to enhance heart care in Dickson and surrounding areas by partnering with our local EMS teams, who have capabilities for 12-lead EKGs, sending us your EKG from the ambulance when you’re on your way to us so that we can activate our cardiac cath lab and emergency services team. TriStar Horizon’s leadership in the cardiac care arena is evidenced by outperforming the national door-to-balloon benchmark of 90 minutes both consistently and significantly with an average of 37 minutes. More than six years after we first gained recognition as an Accredited Chest Pain Center, we remain the only accredited chest pain center between Nashville and Jackson, boosting your chances for survival in a cardiac emergency by 37 percent. With the latest in therapeutic hypothermia units, we have another tool in our arsenal to save lives that could otherwise be lost to heart disease.
Telemedicine
Telemedicine was added to our emergency services in 2011. Telemedicine technology allows experts from across the world to care for patients in Dickson and the surrounding areas, and it can be done in only a matter of seconds. The program virtually delivers experts to a patient's bedside. With the portable equipment, experts from across the world can zoom in on the patient's features, check x-rays, ask questions and even conduct physical exams.
Observation Unit
An 11 bed observation unit was opened in 2011. When ER doctors determine that a patient is too sick to be discharged home, but not sick enough to be admitted to the hospital, they are able to place the patient in an “observation status”. After further testing, the patient may be admitted or discharged home. An observation unit allows the Emergency Department physician to move the patient quickly to a unit designed to provide the level of care needed at that time. The observation unit enhances the flow of patients through the emergency department and frees up inpatient beds. It’s a more effective process for patients
