Attention: Arizona Republic, Dennis Wagner, Arizona Veteran Affairs Reporter

PHOENIX VA HEALTH CARE SYSTEM

OPENS EXPANDED EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT
New 40-bed facility more than doubles emergent care capability for local Veterans

How many times have you or a family member been in the terrible situation of being sick or
injured on a weekend when your family doctors office is closed? Because the situation is
emergent, the only option is to go to the Emergency Room, but you know youll arrive to find a
room full of sick and injured people and youll be waiting for a long time.

The Phoenix VA Health Care System (PVAHCS) is opening its new, expanded Emergency
Department June 5 in hopes wait times for Veterans decreases significantly. With the addition of
22 beds, the facility now has 40 beds for emergent care issues. Additionally, the Emergency
Department instituted a new Fast Track program, similar to an urgent care. Those Veterans
who need to be seen, yet are not considered emergent will go through the Fast Track, which
reduces wait time and backlog immensely.

Boasting state of the art equipment, the new Emergency Department opened to new patients
May 24 and has already helped decrease average wait times from 5 hours to 3 hours.

A ribbon cutting ceremony is scheduled for June 5 at 10 a.m., and will allow you to tour the
facility, see a demonstration of the new triage process/equipment and address questions to Ms.
RimaAnn Nelson, medical center director, and Cathy Adams, chief of emergency department.
Please respond by June 2 to ensure Ms. Nelsons availability for an interview.

This new Emergency Department expansion is just the latest effort by the PVAHCS to increase
access to care for its Veterans. In addition to this expansion, the health care system just entered
a partnership with the CVS MinuteClinic, allowing Veterans with acute health concerns to visit
one of 24 Phoenix-area CVS MinuteClinics for care.

For more information, please call Cindy Dorfner, Phoenix VA Communications Department, at
602-200-6036.

About the Phoenix VA Health Care System

The Phoenix VA Health Care System (PVAHCS) has cared for America's Veterans in Phoenix
for more than half a century since opening its doors in 1951. It served about 1,000 Veterans in
its first year of operation. Since that time, the Veteran population has continued to expand and
so have the services of the Phoenix VA Health Care System. We provide more than 91,000
Veterans with comprehensive health care benefits and provided more than 1 million
appointments in 2016.