Emergency care at North Suburban Medical Center

Emergency room in Thornton, Colorado

When a medical emergency occurs, we understand you and your family need quality emergency care as quickly as possible. That is why, at North Suburban Medical Center, our emergency medicine doctors are available 24/7 to provide advanced treatment for conditions such as heart attacks or concussions. Our goal is to ensure you receive high-quality treatment in our ER when you need it most.

If you or someone you know is experiencing a medical emergency, call 911.

Expert emergency care

North Suburban Medical Center, part of the HealthONE network in Denver, provides excellent ER care and has full-service, freestanding ERs in Thornton and Westminster. Open 24/7 for all your emergency care needs, our ERs treat a wide range of emergency medical conditions.

Our ER offers award-winning emergency care for our community, as well as:

• AirLife Denver helicopter services ready to transport stable patients from our ER to a Level I Trauma Center
• Board-certified emergency doctors and pediatricians
• Experienced emergency nurses and pediatric nurses
• Kid-sized medical equipment and cheerful private rooms to help calm our pediatric patients
• On-call specialists for life-threatening injuries and illnesses
• Rapid response programs for patients experiencing heart attack or stroke (cerebrovascular accident)
• State-of-the art diagnostic imaging and laboratory services

We are committed to providing high-quality emergency care for our community. Our ER works with local emergency medical services (EMS) providers to ensure you receive the lifesaving treatment you need—fast.

Condition H

If you are in our hospital and something does not feel right to you, you can activate what we refer to as "Condition H." This alerts an emergency medical team to come to your bedside immediately. To do this, simply dial "0" on your room phone and tell the hospital operator that you are calling for a Condition H and let them know your room number.

Conditions and symptoms we treat

Our emergency physicians are experienced in treating a wide range of conditions and symptoms, including:

• Abdominal pain
• Allergic reaction
• Blood loss
• Bone fracture
• Behavioral health emergencies
• Difficulty breathing
• Dizziness
• Emergency medicine
• Heart conditions
• Nausea
• Neurological conditions, such as seizure
• Organ failure
• Pneumonia
• Poisoning
• Spider bite
• Virus

Specialized services we offer

Our ERs offer a variety of specialty services to ensure you receive the care you need. These include:

Cardiac treatment

We have one of the best records in the U.S. for getting its patients lifesaving procedures for heart attack quickly. The national standard set by the American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association is 90 minutes, beginning when the patient enters the ER. The national average is 122 minutes.

Stroke treatment

At our hospital, patients experiencing a stroke receive prompt, coordinated treatment from a team of neurologists and specially trained nurses and technicians. Our facility uses the most innovative telemedicine technology to coordinate with the neurosciences department at Swedish Medical Center. This allows us to bring advanced stroke care, right to your room.

Pediatric-friendly ER

Our pediatric emergency services offer a child-friendly environment and kid-sized medical equipment.

Level II Trauma Center

Our ER is a Level II Trauma Center, which means we can offer you complete care for advanced traumatic injuries, 24/7. Our experts are specially trained for these situations, and we are equipped to provide you with the expert trauma care you need.

When to go to the ER

If you have a condition that, without treatment, may cause you serious discomfort or complications, go to the closest ER as soon as possible.

Symptoms or conditions that should be treated in an ER include:

• Abdominal pain
• Broken bones
• Chest pain
• Concussion or head trauma
• Emergency behavioral health issues
• Heart attack
• Open wounds
• Severe allergic reaction
• Stroke (cerebrovascular accident)
• Trouble breathing

For more information, you can also view our guide on when to go to the ER.

When to take your child to the ER

If you think your child may need to go to the ER and your doctor's office is closed (on evenings or weekends), call our free pediatric nurse advice line at any time.

If you are unsure if your child's symptoms require an ER visit, call our pediatric nurse advice line at (303) 563-3300.

ER vs. urgent care

Figuring out whether you or a loved one needs emergency care or urgent care may not be easy, especially if symptoms appear serious.

Urgent care centers typically provide treatment for commonplace sicknesses and injuries, such as flu symptoms and ankle sprains. Most urgent care clinics, however, are not able to treat some of the more serious conditions listed above.

If you are unsure if you need to go to the ER, review our helpful guide on when to go to an ER or urgent care.

If you are unsure if your symptoms require an ER visit, you can call our adult nurse advice line at (888) 389-2752.

Our freestanding ER locations

We offer a convenient freestanding location that serves the southeast Denver area, including:

Northeast ER in Thornton

Whether you have a minor injury or a life-threatening illness, the nurses and doctors at our freestanding Northeast ER are ready to care for your whole family.