General Medical Services

Short Stay Surgery

The staff of Laughlin Memorial Hospital recognizes that hospitalization, for any reason, is often an unsettling experience for you, as well as your family. Therefore, every effort has been made in the design of our short stay surgery unit to create a warm and caring environment while allowing you to undergo your special surgical procedure and return home all in the same day. Although the unit is a specialized unit, it has the full facilities and services of Laughlin Memorial Hospital to call on and to meet any medical needs you may have.

Radiation Oncology

The Radiation Oncology Department is under the direction of a Radiation Oncologist, a physician specialized in the treatment of cancer with high-dose radiation. Radiation treatments are given by Licensed Radiation Therapists who work with the doctor in carrying out the prescribed treatment. The source of the Radiation is through a machine called a linear accelerator.

Emergency Department

Each year over 21,000 people are treated by our Emergency Department. Staffed around-the-clock, 7 days a week by licensed physicians, nurses and technicians, we have the resources to diagnose and treat your sudden or unexpected medical needs.
We also have swift transport of patients in need of specialized care by helicopter.

Laughlin Home Health Agency

Laughlin Home Health Agency is a private, non-profit agency that specializes in providing skilled nursing and other therapeutic services, such as IV therapy, physical therapy, speech therapy and occupational therapy, in your home.

Lifeline

Lifeline is a telephone emergency response system that gives its users a direct link to Laughlin Memorial Hospital. The system is especially useful for the elderly, chronically ill, handicapped and those living alone. For information about how to have Lifeline installed in your home, please contact the Laughlin Home Health Agency.

Laboratory

All patients admitted to the hospital, with a few exceptions, have routine laboratory tests as part of their admitting procedures. This information is valuable to your physician in prescribing your treatment. A medical technologist, who has undergone special training, will perform these and other additional tests if your physician feels they are necessary. The clinical laboratory is under the direction of a pathologist, a physician who has intensive training in diagnostic techniques. All surgically removed tissues are examined by the pathologist for his/her independent study and diagnosis. Also for your convenience, an out patient lab is located in the medical office building adjacent to the hospital.

A complete record of the care and treatment of every patient is kept in our Medical Records Department. These records are required by hospital licensing and accrediting agencies. They are necessary in the delivery of quality, professional medical care to our patients. Medical records are strictly confidential. Information contained in the records is divulged to no one without written consent of the patient or the attending physician, except when required by law.

Pharmacy

The Pharmacy Department within Laughlin Memorial Hospital operates on the unit-dose system which has been proven to bring more accuracy and efficiency to the drug distribution system. The pharmacy provides intravenous medication preparation throughout the hospital.

The department provides various clinical services which play a vital role in the monitoring of drug therapy throughout the organization. Drug information is a key component of this process.

Qualified and experienced medical-social workers are available to assist with your problems. Services include counseling, discharge planning and referrals to and follow-up with community and governmental agencies. It also includes direct services to accident victims, drug, or alcoholic patients and their families; the elderly, homeless, chronically ill, out-of-town patients and relatives, and abused children or adults.

Medical-social services are rendered to all without charge. Daily hours are weekdays 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and a counselor is always on call for emergencies.

Comprehensive educational programs focusing on all facets of pregnancy and prenatal care are offered at Laughlin Memorial Hospital, including preparation for childbirth, labor and delivery, nutrition, Caesarean birth, parenting , breast feeding, and even classes for siblings. For more information call 423-787-5082.

The Surgical Department is prepared at all times to perform surgical procedures. A Registered Nurse will be with you at all times. If you are scheduled to have an operation, certain preoperative procedures might be done in your room just before surgery.

While you are in the operating room, your family may wait in your room where they will be kept informed of your progress. The physician will contact your family when the operation is completed.

After surgery you will be taken to the recovery room.

If you require surgery, a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA) is responsible for administering the anesthetic. During specified hours an anesthetist will be available to talk with you during your pre-admission visit. Also, an anesthetist will talk with you prior to your surgery, and will check on you during your post-operative stay in the Recovery Room.

Recovery Room

A vital facility in our modern hospital is the Recovery Room, located adjacent to the surgical suite. Patients are taken to this room following surgery to receive constant, expert care by the nursing and anesthesia staffs until they can be returned to their room. The members of your family will be kept informed of your condition while you occupy the recovery room.

Your entire healthcare family is vitally interested in assuring that your visit with us is as pleasant and comfortable as possible.

If you should have comments or complaints about your care or the various services provided you, please pick up the phone in your room and dial "4850" between the hours of 8:00 am and 5:00 p.m., or if before 8:00 a.m., please dial "0" and discuss your comment/complaint with our switchboard operator.

Within 24 hours of your call a representative of the hospital will meet with you or your family and attempt to resolve the problem. For your convenience this phone number is near the phone in your room.

Please call and give us the opportunity to better serve you.

You can make arrangements to have a private duty sitter by calling the Social Services Department.

The head nurse of the nursing unit to which you are admitted is a registered nurse and assumes the 24-hour responsibility for the supervision of your nursing care. Staff registered nurses are on duty 24 hours a day to assist the head nurse in planning, supervising, and evaluating the nursing care you receive. Nursing service supervisors are also on duty each shift to support the head nurse and assure that your nursing problems and needs are met. Our nursing service staff "cares" about you.

Health education programs are provided for your viewing on closed circuit television. (Please ask your nurse about this service.) These programs are designed to help you and your family learn more about health problems you may have. You may request to see a program at a time other than the regular schedule.

Your physician, who is a member of the hospital medical staff, is responsible for your medical care. He will write specific orders for medical treatments and the nursing staff will carry out these orders. They will make arrangements for all tests and procedures that your physician has ordered.

Laughlin Memorial Hospital is well staffed with physicians in many specialties. The specialties include:

Cardiology Oncology Dermatology Ophthalmology Ear, Nose and Throat Oral Surgery Emergency Medicine Orthopedics Family Practice Pathology Gastroenterology Pediatrics

General Surgery Podiatry Gynecology Pulmonary Hematology Radiation Oncology Internal Medicine Radiology Neurology Urology Obstetrics Vascular Surgery

Special Care Units
(Intensive Care, coronary Care and Intensive Care Nursery)

Registered nurses in the medical/surgical intensive care unit and a Level II care nursery, provide highly skilled nursing care for those patients who are critically ill or in a potential life- threatening situation.

Emergency equipment is readily available at each bedside. Electronic monitoring equipment allows the nurse to constantly monitor and evaluate each patient's condition.