Mayo Regional Hospital occupied a newly-constructed, 5,500-square-foot Emergency Department addition in May, 2002. The department is nearly three times the size of the former ED, which had functioned since 1978, and greatly improves both the efficiency and confidentiality of patient care.

Mayo’s new Emergency Department is connected to the adjacent patient registration area. It has a separate walk-in entry for pedestrian traffic, and a canopied, two-bay ambulance entrance. A new elevator connects the department directly to the Medical/Surgical Unit on the hospital’s second floor.

Other features of the Emergency Department include a new waiting area and restrooms, enlarged triage room, three large, private examination rooms, two private general treatment rooms, a special treatment room for trauma/cardiac care, and a dedicated orthopedic treatment room. The department also has a decontamination room, expanded storage and office space, an enlarged central nursing station, dedicated staff area and overnight sleep area.

Mayo’s Emergency Department is staffed 24 hours a day, every day, and receives over 11,500 patient visits annually. Highly trained physician assistants are on duty, with on-call physicians in every specialty available for consultation, if needed.

David McDermott, M.D., a family practice physician who has worked at Mayo Regional since 1993, is medical director of the EmergencyDepartment. Dr. McDermott supervises the emergency-trained physician assistants:

• William S. Sheppard, PA-C, has worked at Mayo since 1996. Bill graduated from Essex Technical College in Massachusetts and worked as a Surgical Assistant before completing his B.S. in Physician Assistant training at Hahnemann University Medical College in Philadelphia, and his M.S. in health sciences from Redding College. He is certified by the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants and is a Fellow of the American Academy of Physician Assistants. He is an Advanced Cardiac Life Support instructor and Pediatric Advanced Life Support instructor, and has a special interest in emergency medicine and orthopaedic disease and injury.
• Melanie Fox Dumont, PA-C has worked in Mayo's Emergency Department since 2004. She has a B.S. degree from the University of Vermont and earned her physician assistant certificate in 1988 from the Yale University School of Medicine. Dumont worked in the Emergency Department at Penobscot Valley Hospital in Lincoln, Maine from 1989-2004.

What is a Physician Assistant (PA)?

Physician Assistants are health care professionals licensed to practice medicine with physician supervision. Common services provided by a PA include taking medical histories and performing physical examinations; ordering and interpreting lab tests; diagnosing and treating illnesses; assisting in surgery; prescribing and/or dispensing medication; and counseling patients.

PAs are trained in intensive education programs accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (previously the American Medical Association's Committee on Allied Health Education and Accreditation.)

Emergency Department Nursing Staff

Work shifts with both Registered nurses and Licensed practical nurses, all are trained to take care of adult, geriatric or pediatric patients.

Darcy Merrill, RN is the department’s nurse manager.

UNIT COORDINATORS

These folks are truly special. They are the counter clerks you see at the desk upon arrival. They do every thing that has to do with the paper and records, plus answer phones, call doctors, call the laboratory, find lost records, call radiology and log patients in and out.

So next time you see them smile and thank them for all they do to help us take better care of you!

For more information about Emergency Department services, call (207) 564-4260 or Email us.