PIPELINE:Hospital ER follows extra mile policy

I had the tough experience not too long ago of racing over to the hospital where a dear friend and neighbor had just been rushed. It’s always disorienting to enter an emergency room and not know the status of the situation, where the room is, who the doctor is, etc. Sadly, I quickly learned our friend had passed on.

His family and a tight-knit group of friends were together in a waiting room at the hospital, trying to cope with the sudden shock of what had just happened. Plenty of prayers, tears and supportive words flowed for the next hour or two. In the midst of this most painful situation, one couldn’t help but notice how exceptional the emergency room staff was.

Compassionate and supportive, the team did everything they could before, during and after the tragic event. It made such an impression on me that I wanted to return a few months later to meet them again under different circumstances — which is what brought me back to Huntington Beach Hospital on a recent evening to watch what life is like in our most local ER.

The hospital, in case you’ve missed it, is at 17772 Beach Blvd. I say, “In case you’ve missed it” because, it sits back a bit from the road, and so it is easy to pass without notice (even though it’s been here for 40 years). When I get to the emergency room, it’s just like I remember it from my recent visit: calm, quiet and spotless. It’s not that there aren’t patients here; it’s just that the mode of operation here seems to be one of cool efficiency.

True, it may be a relatively quiet night here at the ER, but still, there is none of the cliché ER panic popularized by Hollywood — no frantic medics clearing a path for a stretcher through a crowded hallway screaming “Get me two pints of O positive!” (I learned one never uses the word, “Quiet” in an emergency room. It’s sort of like uttering the term “no hitter” in a baseball game. Bad form and possibly bad luck. “Comfortable” is the term of choice).

As I sit down with Dr. Lee Weiss, the director of emergency services, he explains to me that’s just the point.