State of Emergency

Straub’s ED is now equipped to meet its capacity, three times that of the 1970s, thanks to new technology. Photo courtesy Kapi‘olani Health Foundation

In 1973, when Straub Clinic and Hospital opened its Emergency Department (ED) in its brand-new, 144-bed hospital building, O‘ahu’s population was 630,528. Today, more than a million people call the island home, and every year, the ED at Straub Medical Center treats tens of thousands of them when they need help most.

“The Emergency Department is like a microenvironment of our overall community,” says Kunane Wooton, Straub’s ED manager. “We see teachers, first responders, homeless people, state and county leaders, grandparents, and parents for everything from falls to life-threatening conditions including heart attacks and strokes.”

Now, the footprint of the department that sees more than 30,000 patients annually—three times the number in the 1970s—should evolve to allow Straub more opportunities to introduce the latest in ever-changing medical technologies and treatments. Straub is looking to renovate and expand its ED. Initial plans include additional space, more patient beds, and private rooms. New nurse stations would be designed to further optimize and enhance the workflow.

The new ED is scheduled to be completed as work continues on Straub’s health care campus of the future. The flexible and forward-thinking ED design includes isolation rooms, a feature that medical centers around the world realized an increasing need for following the sudden impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Straub also plans to bring in the latest radiological equipment to enhance the ED team’s ability to quickly diagnose and treat patients.

“Technology can also help streamline things so that our nurses and medical staff can spend more time doing what they do best: working with their patients,” Wooton says. “We see people who are sick and scared, so making a personal connection quickly, making the patient feel comfortable and confident, can also help us discover what is really going on.”

That connection to the community remains at the center of Straub’s ED, much as it was the first day it opened 50 years ago.

“Our strength is that every single person here is truly committed to the people they care for and each other,” Wooton says. “We always bring our human side to the bedside, and that’s what makes me most proud.”

Learn more at Give2Straub.org.