Emergency services staff at Southeastern Health’s Southeastern Regional Medical Center are urging the public to visit their family physicians or use local clinics for all health conditions not requiring emergency care. Currently all staffed beds at Southeastern Regional Medical Center are occupied and patients seeking admission are facing delays.
“We are seeing a very large population in our ER. Many patients are presenting with flu, respiratory and gastrointestinal symptoms,” said Renae Taylor, chief nursing officer for Southeastern Health. “To avoid long waits in the emergency room, persons with flu-like symptoms or chronic conditions should call their family doctor or visit one of the many clinics located throughout the region.”
She added that persons with true emergencies, such as trauma or chest pain, should not hesitate to come in for emergency care. Emergency providers have asked that patients with chronic conditions–such as diabetes, chronic pain syndrome or high blood pressure–call their family physician before coming to the emergency room. Persons with flu-like symptoms such as fever, chills, body aches and cough should call their family doctor or one of the many clinics offering primary care in the county.
Patients who come to SRMC for emergency care will be treated in order of the seriousness of their condition. For persons not facing life-threatening conditions, this may mean a delay in treatment during the current conditions.
Southeastern Health announced visitation restrictions for SRMC on December 23 due to a significant increase in the number of patients being treated for influenza.
SouthEastern Health operates 13 primary care clinics as well as two urgent care centers— one in Southeastern Health Mall within Biggs Park Mall in Lumberton and another in Pembroke—and one convenient care clinic located in the Walmart Supercenter in Lumberton. The urgent care centers, which are open daily from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., and The Clinic at Walmart, open daily from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., accept patients without an appointment.
For a complete clinic listing with hours and phone numbers, logon to www.southeasternhealth.org, then select “Our Services” and “Physician Services.”
About Author
