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Southeast Hospital, now known as Mercy Southeast is the first hospital in Missouri to be certified as a Pediatric Emergency Prepared Facility. The certification is through Missouri Emergency Medical Services for Children (EMSC), a federally funded grant program that aims to decrease child morbidity and mortality in emergency settings.
Nationally, about 80 percent of pediatric patients are seen in community and general adult emergency departments, and about 50 percent of children are seen in emergency departments with a low pediatric volume (fewer than five pediatric patients a day).
Southeast Hospital initially took interest in the certification after Lori Merritt, director of emergency services, joined the Missouri EMSC advisory committee in 2021. For the last six months, Merritt and her ER teams have improved and prioritized pediatric care through training, education, quality improvement and age-appropriate equipment. Merritt notes that pediatric cases make up about 14 percent of patient volume.
She says that the ability to prioritize pediatric patients just as hospitals prioritize adult stroke and STEMI heart attacks (a type of heart attack that is known to be more severe and dangerous than other types of heart attack) can “greatly improve outcomes and health equity of children in Missouri. Visiting the emergency department can be stressful for children. We are committed to providing excellent care to young patients while also easing their fears and making their ER visit as pleasant as possible. This certification validates that long-standing commitment.”
“We were honored to work with SoutheastHEALTH and their team on our first Pediatric Emergency Prepared Facility. The time and effort that SoutheastHEALTH has put into developing this program not only affects outcomes of children with the community, but also benefits children all over Missouri.” - Danielle Lee, Missouri EMSC program manager
She added, “SoutheastHEALTH has set the standard for hospitals of its size on how to appropriately prepare for the care of a child during an emergency. I look forward to the mentorship that SoutheastHEALTH can offer to other hospitals committed to do the same for children within their communities.”
Along with Missouri, 22 other states in the nation have pediatric recognition programs in place.
