By Tama R. Van Decar, MD

Over the past decade, TriStar Health has been committed to expanding access to emergency care for the Middle Tennessee region. Our first freestanding emergency room opened in Spring Hill just over ten years ago with 24/7 care by board-certified emergency room physicians. Since then, we have opened several additional freestanding emergency rooms across the region providing convenient access to emergency care services for communities whose closest ER may be miles away.

Most recently, TriStar Century Farms ER was established in the Antioch community, the first in the metro-Nashville area. This location has proved to be a vital resource for not only the community, but for emergency medical services. First responders are able to quickly drop off patients and return to their service area without having to drive into other areas of the city. Now, TriStar Health has been approved to open two more locations in Nashville, including Bellevue and East Nashville.

So, what is a freestanding emergency room? It’s a question I receive often. Essentially, these facilities are full service ERs that serve as an extension of one of our main hospital campuses. The locations have the same equipment and capabilities as our hospital-based ERs, and the physicians and nurses can provide treatment for any emergent condition. In 2022, our freestanding emergency rooms treated 102 patients for cardiac arrest and 87 patients for stroke. Many of these patients were able to travel a shorter distance and receive care faster. I have no doubt that these facilities save lives.

Another common question I hear is how these facilities are different from urgent care centers. As I mentioned above, these facilities are open 24/7 and operate the same way as a traditional emergency room. This means that no patients are turned away due to insurance status or inability to pay. Freestanding emergency rooms can accept patients from ambulances, and physicians also have the ability to seamlessly transfer patients to a hospital for further care should an admission be needed. TriStar Health facilitates hospital transfers to the associated TriStar hospital at no cost to the patient.

As healthcare continues to evolve, we know patients are looking for high-quality and convenient options for care, diagnosis and treatment. When seconds matter, TriStar Health has 17 ER locations across Middle Tennessee and Southern Kentucky, including five freestanding locations. We want to provide peace of mind for our communities that high-quality care is close by whenever there is an emergency, and we look forward to opening more freestanding emergency rooms in the future.

Tama R. Van Decar, MD, ACPE, has served as Chief Medical Officer of HCA Healthcare’s TriStar Division since 2017. She provides physician administrative operational oversight that supports the TriStar Health network of 11 hospitals and multiple access points, including freestanding ERs, oncology centers, behavioral health centers, physician practices, urgent care centers, imaging centers and telemedicine across Middle Tennessee and Southern Kentucky.