Neighborhood ER Clinics Offer Emergency Care Close To Home

WESTMINSTER, Colo. (CBS4)- There will soon be five neighborhood emergency rooms not connected to a hospital in different parts of the Front Range. Those facilities are intended to give more people additional options for ER care.

Health administrators say these ER clinic locations provide emergency care just minutes away, cuts down on ER wait times and saves lives.

The newest location for HealthOne is the Northwest ER located at 112th and Sheridan in Westminster. It officially opens on Monday, Sept. 15.

There are already four other locations that are providing emergency room services. Mary and Barry Dobson recently visited one of those locations.

"I heard a thud," said Barry.

"I went to get in the shower and I didn't remember anything after that," said Mary.

"I went into the bathroom and she was lying on the floor," said Barry.

The Dobsons have been together for 30 years but one summer morning they thought their time together was nearing an end.

"I'd seen a lot of strokes in my life and the outcome isn't very good," said Barry.

Mary was rushed to one of the neighborhood ER clinics.

"I had driven by it and I thought it was one of those advanced urgent care that you walk into and they bandage your finger," said Barry.

But the HealthOne ER clinics are full-fledged emergency rooms.

"Mary was fortunate enough to receive TPA which is a clot-busting medication which helped to preserve her brain," said North Suburban Medical Center spokeswoman Jennifer Alderfer.

"I feel really good, I really do," said Mary.

As another neighborhood ER clinic prepares to open, doctors and nurses are getting ready to move in and help those in need. The Dobsons are thankful their home was close to emergency care.

"I think I'm a very lucky man. I get a little emotional about this," said Barry.

"Thank God I'm here today," said Mary.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:

Although the Northwest ER doesn't open until Monday, there is a free family festival on Saturday from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m. with several activities that include:

• We're giving away about 150 bike helmets for kids who don't have them – we just see too many kids in our ERs with preventable head injuries and we're trying to do our part to stop this.
• Pictures with Miles the Bronco and other local team mascots
• A bounce house and rock climbing wall for kids
• Blood pressure checks, stroke screenings, etc.
• Opportunities to chat with a pharmacist, play a Teddy Bear x-ray game, games for kids around things like how to wash your hands properly, etc.
• We're looking at it as a way to introduce ourselves to the community and get to know our neighbors, have some fun, and do some important health education.

Also, we'll give away free flu shots at the Northwest ER Thursdays-Saturdays in October. The best place for info on that is www.northsuburban.com/flu.

HealthOne Emergency Room Clinic Locations:

Northwest ER
720-460-3900
11230 N. Benton St.
Westminster, CO 80020

Centennial Medical Plaza
303-699-3000
14200 East Arapahoe Road
Centennial, CO 80112

North Suburban Northeast ER
303-280-6640
12793 Holly Street
Thornton, CO 80602

Saddle Rock ER
720-376-6400
22500 E. Dry Creek Road
Aurora, CO 80016

Southwest ER
303-932-6911
6196 South Ammons Way
Littleton, CO 80123