LAC+USC Medical Center
Department of Emergency Medicine
The Department of Emergency Medicine (DEM) is an autonomous clinical and academic department within the Medical Center and Medical School. It has the responsibility for initial triage, evaluation, management, and disposition of up to 500 patients daily, including pediatric trauma as well as those who present with the complete spectrum of adult medical and surgical problems. The patients served at the LAC+USC Medical Center come from a varied ethnic background with a significant Latino population, a substantial working class population and a large number of indigent patients.
With the advent of the replacement facility in 2009, designed and constructed over approximately 15 years at a cost of over one billion dollars, all emergency services provided at LAC+USC have been consolidated into one central department, located on the ground floor of the Diagnostic and Treatment (D&T) tower of the new hospital. The new facility is one of the most technologically advanced hospitals in the United States, and the emergency department, with over 100 monitored beds, is its centerpiece.
The Department of Emergency Medicine is also responsible for an active Paramedic Base Station, the Hyperbaric Treatment Chamber on Catalina Island, the Center for Life Support Training and Research, the Emergency Evaluation Area of the Los Angeles County Jail Service, and a 22 bed Observation Unit.
The Emergency Department is organized into pods:
- Resuscitation – The centerpiece of the department, with 12 bays for resuscitating the most critically ill and injured patients, both adult and pediatric. Each bay is spacious, has operating suite lighting, and has all the physical and technological resources and supplies necessary for modern resuscitation immediately available, including bedside ultrasound for each of the 12 suites.
- North – This pod, by itself larger than most entire emergency departments, consists of 26 private rooms, as well as two flexible curtained areas for a total of 36 patient care spaces. These beds, all with central telemetry monitoring, are the most flexible areas of the department, capable of caring for patients of all levels of acuity with the exception of the most critical trauma cases (which are seen in Resuscitation).
- East– This pod is functionally similar to north, except with 14 beds.
- West– A "fast-track" area, staffed by a mixture of physicians and mid-level providers. Patients seen in this area include eye and ENT problems, as well as non-critical bone and soft tissue injuries and infections. There is a slit-lamp device available, as well as complete splinting / casting and procedural sedation capabilities.
- Peds– Pediatric patients of all levels of acuity are seen in this pod, which has five specially designated resuscitation bays for critically ill and injured children.
Other areas of the department:
- Jail ED – The Jail ED, a separate but fully functional emergency department, is located on the ground floor of the inpatient tower, and sees all persons in custody requiring medical attention.
- Psychiatric evaluation area– Adjacent to the main emergency department, this area is staffed continuously for the evaluation and treatment of patients who are suffering from acute mental illness that renders them a danger to themselves or others.
- Urgent Access Diagnostic Center (UADC) – The UADC, created in 2006, provides urgent, scheduled access for low-acuity patients who present to the LAC+USC Emergency Department. The UADC facilitates rapid outpatient diagnostic options for patients who need timely evaluation.
- Observation Area – Staffed by mid-level providers and supervised by DEM attendings, patients who do not meet criteria for immediate hospital admission may be observed for up to 24 hours in this unit, and reassessed for admission or discharge. This unit is located on the ground floor of the adjacent clinic tower.