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Emergency Medicine at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania
The
Emergency Department of the Hospital
of the University of Pennsylvania (HUP) is located in the heart
of University City in West Philadelphia and has an annual volume
of over 57,000 patients a year.
The patient population is diverse, as the ED functions as the major tertiary care center for the entire Philadelphia region. There is a high level of acuity in the HUP ED with an admission rate of 22%, representing 30-35% of the admissions to the hospital.
All patients in the ED are initially evaluated by a house-officer and then seen by an attending Emergency Department faculty member. There are 2-4 faculty members on duty 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to provide close supervision and quality teaching of residents and students. A senior emergency medicine resident is on duty at all times to provide additional supervision and management of operations as a "junior attending."
In 1995 the HUP ED was completely renovated, creating a 28,000 square foot new department with 4 resuscitation rooms, a 1400 square foot trauma resuscitation space, 4 negative pressure rooms, one secured psychiatric evaluation room and 20 additional rooms, not including the Fast Track area. In 2006, the ED was expanded to add 8 Clinical Decision Unit (CDU) beds. The department is unique in that all charting is computerized on the "EMTRAC" program with 18 computer terminals in the clinical area and immediate access to patients' past and present records. Laboratory and radiology reports are accessible on the same terminals.
The administration has provided the necessary financial and ideological support to create a clinical department of the highest caliber with new monitors, digital radiology imaging (PACS units), slit lamp, panorex equipment, spiral CT scanner within the department and in-room x-ray equipment in 6 resuscitation rooms.
All Penn medical students take Emergency Medicine as a required third year clinical rotation and all surgery, medicine and ob/gyn interns rotate through the ED as part of their respective training programs.
