The Good Samaritan Hospital Emergency Department (ED) offers you and your family the latest in technology, maximum efficiency and decreased waiting time, along with compassionate care.
What to Expect When You Arrive At The Good Samaritan Hospital Emergency Department
Adult and Pediatric Emergency Department
255 Lafayette Avenue, Suffern, NY 10901
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If you seek immediate medical attention, please call 911
Emergency Department highlights include:
- Thirty (30) private modern treatment
rooms
- Advanced cardiac monitoring
- Specially designed trauma & critical
care rooms
- Access to board-certified pediatric emergency physicians
- Fast-Track area for rapid evaluation
and treatment of less severe illness
and injury
- Centralized, efficient nursing stations
- Dedicated X-ray and CAT scan rooms
in the Emergency Department
- Specially designed trauma rooms
- Centralized, efficient nursing pod stations
- Computerized medication system
- A dedicated X-ray room and a dedicated CT room
- Psychiatric treatment program complete with:
- Dedicated psychiatric room
- Access to psychiatric social worker 20 hours a day
- On-site detox unit
- Private family room
Our emergency helicopter landing zone allows patients to be quickly airlifted to our trauma center.
Our Services
Emergency specialists are ready 24 hours a day
The New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) recently designated Good Samaritan Hospital, a member of the Westchester Medical Center Health Network (WMCHealth), as a Level III Adult Trauma Center. The trauma services team is comprised of board-certified surgeons and emergency medicine physicians that work in tandem with specialists from a range of clinical specialties, such as orthopedics and neurosurgery.
Fast Track assures prompt treatment if you need immediate, not emergency, medical care.
If you need services for non-life-threatening injuries or illnesses, such as sprains and fractures, colds or flu, you can usually be examined and treated more quickly in the Fast Track area of the Emergency Department.
Chest Pain Center
Good Samaritan Hospital is a regional chest pain center. Our Emergency Department staff is trained to recognize cardiac emergencies and our cardiology department is on-call 24-hours a day to address any immediate treatment needs of cardiac patients in the hospital’s two cardiac catheterization labs. We also have an open-heart surgery program for patients who need more intensive treatment..
Primary Stroke Center
Every second counts when treating a stroke. Immediate access to life-saving therapies greatly improves stroke outcomes. The New York State Department of Health has designated The Stroke Center at Good Samaritan Hospital as a Primary Stroke Center. The designation means that our Stroke Center has the resources and processes in place to quickly treat acute ischemic stroke patients. The Stroke Center at Good Samaritan Hospital also provides 24/7 access to a neurologist, available in-person or via telemedicine within 15 minutes of request.
Additionally, The Stroke Center at Good Samaritan Hospital was presented the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s Get With The Guidelines ®-Stroke Gold Plus, Target: Stroke Honor Roll Elite Plus and Target : Type 2 Honor Roll Quality Achievement Awards. The awards recognize the hospital’s commitment to ensuring stroke patients receive the most appropriate treatment according to nationally recognized, research-based guidelines and the latest scientific evidence. The Target: Stroke Elite designation signifies that the Stroke Center meets the quality measures that reduce the time between the patient’s arrival at the hospital and treatment with the clot-buster tissue plasminogen activator, or tPA. The Stroke Center was also awarded Target: Type 2 Honor Roll honor. This recognition signifies that the Stroke Team at Good Samaritan Hospital meets the quality measures for the “Overall Diabetes Cardiovascular Initiative Composite Score.” The score takes into account speed to treatment, proper medication and lifestyle recommendations provided to diabetic and cardiovascular patients who are at risk for, or who have had a stroke.
In some cases, when more specialized care is needed, our partnership with Westchester Medical Center allows us to rapidly transfer patients for evaluation by their neurovascular intervention team.
Department of Neurology – Call 845.368.8808
The Triage System ensures immediate treatment for critically ill patients
The standard Triage System established in Good Samaritan Hospital's Emergency Department is designed to identify patients with the most severe injuries or illnesses and ensure that these patients receive treatment immediately.
What to Expect
What happens first?
When you arrive at the ED, you will be quickly registered by a clerk. The clerk will ask you to provide basic information. A bracelet will be placed on your arm with your name and birthday. Please look at the bracelet to make sure the information is correct.
After you are entered into our computer system, a registered nurse (RN) will perform a triage assessment.
When will I be evaluated?
All emergencies are different, and the ED can become very busy. The order in which patients are treated depends on the seriousness of their condition, rather than the time they arrived, or whether then came in by car or ambulance.
Remember, patients with serious and life-threatening illnesses are always treated first.
Is there anything I should know before I am seen?
Yes, please review the below:
- Some patients may need to stay in the lobby until space becomes available in the treatment area. Even if you came in by ambulance, you may be brought to the lobby for triage.
- You should not eat or drink anything unless a nurse or doctor has said it is OK. Please ask before you eat or drink anything while waiting.
- If you need to use the bathroom while you are waiting, please ask a nurse if you should provide a urine sample.
- Please alert a staff member if there is any change in how you are feeling during your visit. We will recheck you.
- Many members of the health care team will ask you questions throughout your visit. It may feel like you are repeating yourself a lot. We are listening, and we to talk to each other. For your safety, however, we need to hear from you about your illness.
Can my family/friend stay with me in the ED?
- Under NYS Department of Health COVID-19 guidelines, visitation in now allowed in all hospitals in New York with certain restrictions as outlined by Executive Order.
- All visitors, including designated support people, must be screened for symptoms and recent travel. Any visitor subject to quarantine restrictions for recent travel domestically or abroad, will not be allowed visitation. This includes quarantine orders specific to New York State available at https://coronavirus.health.ny.gov/covid-19-travel-advisory.
- One support person will be able to accompany patients during emergency room care.
- Visitors must remain in patient rooms at all times and must exit the campus when their visitation time or accompaniment is over.
- All hospital, state and federal guidelines regarding infection control practices must be followed.
If my private doctor or specialist called ahead, will I still have to wait?
Your doctor calling ahead helps us organize a plan of care for you. The order in which we care for patients is based on severity of illness and space availability.
Will a doctor be evaluating me?
All patients will see either an ED doctor, a Physician Assistant (PA) or a Nurse Practitioner (NP). Some patients will be evaluated by more than one medical provider. The doctors, PAs, and NPs are all highly experienced in Emergency Medicine. Even if a doctor does not speak with you directly or examine you during your visit, the PA or NP discusses all of their patients with the attending doctor on duty, so the doctor is involved in your care.
How long will my visit take?
Many factors determine how long you will be in the ED. Some factors that affect the amount of time spent in the ED may include:
- The severity of illness or injury
- How many patients and/or how sick those patients are in the ED when you visit
- If you need evaluation by a specialist
- If you need special tests
- Some patients with minor illnesses can be seen in the Fast Track area.
Rest assured that efficiently and accurately treating you is our priority.
How long will it take to get results back from tests that are ordered?
Below is a guide that estimates how long before we receive test results for common ED tests. Remember that certain tests are dependent on the results of other tests. For example, to receive a CAT scan with dye, you may need to have blood tests back first, etc.
- Basic blood tests – two to three hours
- X-Rays – one to two hours
- CAT scan without dye – one to two hours
- CAT scan with dye – three to five hours
- Ultrasound – one to three hours
- MRI – these tests are infrequently ordered in the ED, and usually only performed when other tests are not sufficient. When ordered, can take three to six hours.
What happens when my evaluation is complete?
After your evaluation is complete, the ED team may try to contact your private doctor or a specialist. They will decide if you need to stay in the hospital or if you can be discharged home. On occasion, some patients may need to be transferred to another facility for specialty care.
If you require admission, your private doctor or the hospital doctor will write admission orders and determine which type of floor you will be assigned a bed (for instance, on the cardiac floor). Beds on certain types of floors may have limited openings and it can take time for transfers. Once you are admitted, your admitting doctor will take over your care.
If you are stable to be sent home, we will give you discharge and follow-up instructions to continue your care once you leave. Please ask any questions you may have before you leave so that you can best continue your care at home.
Will I be contacted at home once I am discharged?
There are a few reasons that you may be contacted at home once you are discharged.
Check-up phone call
- You may receive a phone call from our staff within 72 hours after you are discharged. The staff member will go over any questions or concerns you may have.
- If they are not able to answer your questions, they will direct you to someone who can.
Test results
- Certain test results become available after you are discharged.
- For example, sometimes the radiologist will re-read X-rays and notice an abnormality not seen on the initial reading.
- Culture tests that look for bacteria in urine, blood, or other body fluids can take several days for results to be ready.
When this occurs, you may receive a phone call from the ED telling you that we received your results after your discharge. We will explain what these results mean and how they can be addressed.
- The doctor may need to change or add medications, advise you to schedule an appointment with your family doctor or specialist for further evaluation, or even to return to the hospital for additional treatment.
- If we have trouble reaching you, and you receive a phone message or a letter is sent to your house, please call us back 24-hours a day at 845.368.5029, and ask to speak with a doctor, physician assistant, or nurse practitioner on duty.
For this reason, it is important that you provide us with the best contact phone number and address to reach you.
Satisfaction survey
- You may also receive a patient satisfaction survey in the mail or by phone following your visit. Please take part in the survey. Your feedback is very important to us and will help us improve the care we provide to our patients.
Obstetrics Emergency Department: Expert Care Available for Pregnant Women in Need of Acute Care, 24 Hours a Day
Good Samaritan Hospital, a member of the Westchester Medical Center Health Network (WMCHealth), is home to the region's ONLY dedicated Obstetrics Emergency Department that offers expectant mothers and families high-quality, specialized labor and delivery care 24 hours a day, seven days a week. It is the only OB-ED in Rockland and Orange Counties and in the entire Hudson Valley.
The Obstetrics Emergency Department, known as the OB-ED, offers labor and delivery care as an extension of Good Samaritan Hospital’s primary Emergency Department. It collaborates with the Good Samaritan OB Hospitalist Program, providing pregnant women access to specially-trained physicians and nurses.
The Obstetrics (OB) Emergency Department (ED), or OB-ED, was made possible through the creation of the Good Samaritan Hospital OB Hospitalist Program, a partnership with the OB Hospitalist Group (OBHG). The program’s board-certified OB physicians are on-site, all day, every day to ensure expectant mothers receive expert care at a moment’s notice. The physicians and highly-skilled nurses are available to deliver babies if a patient's own physician is unavailable and will respond to any obstetric emergency.
The OB-ED also provides a calm setting that prioritizes a patient-first culture, with dignity and sensitivity embedded in every aspect of care.
The OB-ED also provides a calm setting that prioritizes a patient-first culture, with dignity and sensitivity embedded in every aspect of care.
Family-Centered Care, Everyday
Good Samaritan Hospital, a member of the Westchester Medical Center Health Network (WMCHealth), offers pediatric services in its Emergency Department (ED) to treat children from birth to age 21.
Emergency Department highlights include:
- Modern treatment rooms and trauma rooms with built-in X-ray machines
- Two in-unit radiology rooms
- Special orthopedic room
- Advanced heart monitoring system
- Psychiatric treatment room
- Private family room
Our young patients will benefit from Good Samaritan Hospital’s WMCHealth affiliation with the Maria Fareri Children's Hospital (MFCH), the Hudson Valley’s only acute-care children’s hospital. The most seriously ill or injured children in need of specialized care and procedures can be transferred seamlessly to Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital for treatment that is not available anywhere else in the Hudson Valley.
Level III Trauma Center
Residents of Rockland, Orange and Bergen counties now have a new and convenient local option for trauma services, one with direct ties to a regional center that offers the highest level of trauma services available.
The New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) recently designated Good Samaritan Hospital, a member of the Westchester Medical Center Health Network (WMCHealth), as a Level III Adult Trauma Center. In its trauma designation declaration, the NYSDOH commended Good Samaritan Hospital for “meeting nationally recognized standards in providing care to critically injured patients and in having a continuous process in place for monitoring and improving that care.”
The trauma services team at Good Samaritan Hospital is comprised of board-certified surgeons and emergency medicine physicians that work in tandem with specialists from a range of clinical specialties, such as orthopedics, vascular, thoracic and neurosurgery. Advanced trauma care is now available near you.
A Much-Needed Service with Ties to Advanced Care Centers
Trauma cases in the Hudson Valley region of New York State are on the rise and per the 2020 United States Census Bureau, the population of Rockland County, where Good Samaritan Hospital is located, has increased by eight and a half percent in the last decade.
Key differentiators for the Good Samaritan Hospital trauma service are WMCHealth Network links to the Level I adult and pediatric trauma services at Westchester Medical Center and Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital. As regional Level I trauma centers, Westchester Medical Center and Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital can care for the most complex trauma cases. Our intra-network link to these hospitals affords us the opportunity to consult with our Level I trauma service colleagues on care, plus offer seamless patient transfer to either facility, should the need arise.
Open and Caring for Patients
Good Samaritan Hospital's Level III Adult Trauma Center is currently treating trauma patients as it undergoes a standard service review by the American College of Surgeons. As part of its trauma services, the hospital also offers an Injury Prevention Program co-sponsored by the New York State Chapter of the American Trauma Society.
"House Calls"
With traumatic injuries continuing to rise in Rockland, Orange and Bergen counties, Frank Aversano, MD, Medical Director of the Level III Adult Trauma Center at Good Samaritan Hospital, a member of the Westchester Medical Center Health Network, was interviewed on WRCR Radio’s “House Calls” about how the community can benefit from a trauma center close to home.