Emergency Services

Providing 24/7 Peace of Mind

At Mountainside Medical Center, board-certified emergency medicine physicians and specially trained nurses and staff are dedicated to expertly diagnosing and treating a full spectrum of medical emergencies around the clock, 365 days per year.

These professionals are always on-duty to provide expert care for patients of all ages:

  • Board-Certified Emergency Medicine Physicians
  • Obstetrician
  • Neonatologist
  • Anesthesiologist
  • Hospitalists (Internists)
  • Internal Medicine Residents
  • Expertly Trained Emergency Care Nurses (certified in advanced cardiac life support and pediatric advanced life support)
  • 24-Hour Crisis Psychiatric Staff
  • Specialists on-call and available to provide advanced care in 20 areas including: Cardiology, Neurology, Neurosurgery, Orthopedic Surgery, General Surgery, Urology and more.

Comfort and compassion along with medical care

  • Our patient advocates are dedicated to greeting patients and their families, keeping them informed and making them as comfortable as possible.
  • Our state-of-the-art sign language computer and language interpretation phone system ensure that we’re ready to serve patients with special communication needs.
  • Our case managers support patients and their loved ones by responding to questions regarding treatment, insurance, placement, transportation and other concerns.

Geriatric friendly

At Mountainside Medical Center, we’re committed to serving the special needs of elderly patients. We offer areas with less noise and softer lighting to ensure their comfort, safety and satisfaction.

Single-bed treatment rooms

Upon arrival at the Emergency Department, you will be seen by a triage nurse who will assess your condition. The role of the triage nurse is to ensure that patients with the most serious conditions receive priority care. If admission is necessary, our patients are treated in single-bed rooms for their comfort and privacy.

Fast tracking your case

We can reduce your wait if your emergency is relatively minor. Our eight-bed Fast Track Unit is fully staffed to ensure prompt, efficient care for patients with some less serious conditions and injuries. Fast Track also offers convenient bedside registration.

Common reasons to come to the ED

Some of the most frequent complaints and conditions we handle in our Emergency Department include:

  • Chest pain - angina and myocardial infarction (heart attack)
  • Abdominal pain
  • Abscesses
  • Stroke – cerebrovascular accidents
  • Diabetes
  • Gastrointestinal bleeding
  • Heart failure
  • Serious cuts and wounds - lacerations
  • Suicidal thoughts or feelings
  • Orthopedic and rheumatologic issues
  • Respiratory diseases and pneumonia
  • Seizures
  • Infections

Every second counts…and we’re ready to act 24/7

Since time is of the essence when a stroke occurs, we’re proud to be designated as a Primary Stroke Center by the New Jersey State Department of Health and Senior Services. That means you can rely on us for expert, 24/7 emergency care.

Our program - staffed by experienced, skilled physicians and specially trained staff - encompasses numerous diagnostic and treatment services, as well as rehabilitation therapy when needed.

Mountainside Medical Center’s Primary Stroke Center adheres to the American Heart - Stroke Association’s nationally accepted guidelines and standards of excellence. In fact, we are a recipient of its annual Gold Plus Award. We’ve also been awarded a special, disease-specific certification in stroke care from The Joint Commission.

Emergency Angioplasty

When seconds count, we’re ready to intervene

About 450,000 Americans suffer fatal heart attacks each year - and, most die within an hour of experiencing their first symptoms. At Mountainside Medical Center, we’re committed to much better outcomes. That’s why we have a 24/7 emergency angioplasty team. In fact, we’re one of a select group of community hospitals in New Jersey that’s licensed by the state to perform emergency angioplasty, a critical lifesaving procedure.

When a heart attack patient arrives in our Emergency Department, our interventional cardiologists and their designated support team goes to work to restore normal blood flow to the heart. Since studies have shown that time is of the essence and quick treatment can reduce damage to the heart muscle and greatly improving a patient’s chances of a full recovery, we’re prepared to act both expertly and swiftly.

You can turn to our ED with confidence because all of our patients consistently receive the finest quality care. In fact, along with hospital-wide accreditation, Mountainside Medical Center has been awarded disease-specific Chest Pain, Stroke, Sepsis and Wound Care certifications by The Joint Commission. Our stroke program has also been recognized by the American Heart -Stroke Association with a Gold Plus award.

Click here to read about one patient’s miraculous experience in his own words.

 

“I’m back from the brink.”

Sgt. Fred Arnold

When a 45-year-old Caldwell police sergeant’s life was hanging in the balance, coordinated medical care and skilled cardiologists at Mountainside Medical Center tipped the scales in his favor.

“I blacked out behind the wheel.”

The last thing I remember was driving my patrol car. When I awakened five days later, I was in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at Mountainside Medical Center. That’s when I learned I’d suffered cardiac arrest, passed out and crashed into a pole - only to be given a new chance at life by the hospital’s Cardiology team.

“Emergency angioplasty removed a blood clot and opened my artery.”

I was stunned to hear that I’d arrived at the hospital by ambulance with no pulse and an abnormal, potentially lethal heart rhythm. Thankfully, Dr. Domenico Mariano, a board-certified cardiologist, immediately sprang into action. He summoned his colleague, Dr. James Amato, Jr., a board-certified interventional cardiologist, and other specially trained staff to the Cardiac Catheterization Lab where Dr. Amato performed an emergency angioplasty to remove a blood clot from a clogged artery and used two stents to keep it open.

“Arctic Sun technology helped to protect to my brain.”

While I was in cardiac arrest, my brain didn’t receive oxygen and I was unresponsive, so I was transferred to the ICU. I later discovered that while I was under sedation, a state-of-the-art Arctic Sun cooling system was used to lower my body temperature to minimize damage to my brain.

“My entire family will forever be grateful to Mountainside Medical Center.”

As I was receiving expert medical care, my wife Julie (accompanied by our youngest, Ethan, age six) arrived at the hospital with a police escort. That fateful day - and those that followed - the staff comforted Julie and kept her informed. They also managed an outpouring of concern and interest from relatives and friends, the Caldwell mayor and council, my colleagues and the local media.

I spent 12 days at Mountainside Medical Center and received care in the ED, Cardiac Catheterization Lab, ICU and Telemetry Unit before I was released to a rehabilitation center for the next phase of my recovery. I’m alive today and back at work because of the professionalism and heroic efforts of everyone involved with my case.’

 

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