Arizona Edition - According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in 2010, Americans made 129.8 million visits to hospital emergency rooms. Many are suggesting the number of visits will go up this year because of more people having insurance under the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare.
And while demand for services may go up nationwide, in some areas, where only one hospital serves a region, demand for services is already high. In a city like Yuma, which sees a literal doubling of its population with winter visitors, many remember Yuma Regional Medical Center putting up tents in the parking lot to handle the case load.
But all that is in the process of changing. YRMC officials have been working on several projects In order to keep up with patient demand. The latest project is the development of a new Emergency Department that will replace the hospital’s original building—once known as Parkview hospital.
KAWC's Stephanie Sanchez spoke with officials who honor the structure’s history and look forward to the expansion of the hospital’s emergency department…(originally aired 06/11/14).
This piece was featured in the June 11th Arizona Edition. Other pieces featured in the show can be found below in the related content section.
