You may receive two bills for the same hospital visit. However these bills are for different services-you are not being charged twice. One bill is from the hospital, and it covers charges for emergency and nursing services, equipment, medication and supplies. The second bill is from the physician group, and it covers the professional charges for the emergency physician's services.

Your hospital has chosen to contract with TeamHealth to provide administrative and staffing services. This decision exemplifies your hospital's commitment to the provision of excellent healthcare.

There are a few things that cause lengthy waiting times in emergency rooms. Many people who come to the emergency department are very sick and must be admitted to the hospital. If no hospital beds are available, the patient must wait in the emergency department until a bed opens up. This can cause other patients to wait even longer to be seen. Other people go to the emergency department for minor medical conditions that could be treated by a primary care physician or an urgent care center.

A hospitalist is a physician who specializes in caring solely for patients who have been admitted to the hospital. This doctor acts as a primary care physician while you are in the hospital so that you can receive the best and most thorough care possible.

The American College of Emergency Physicians guidelines state that you should call 911 if you answer 'yes' to at least one of the following questions:

• Is the situation life-threatening?
• Could the situation worsen and become life-threatening during a drive to the emergency department?
• Do you need special equipment or skills to move the person?
• Could traffic or distance cause a delay in getting to the emergency department?

If a medical condition arises suddenly and you believe that if you do not receive immediate medical treatment, your life or health could be in jeopardy, you should go to the emergency department. Some examples include:

• Signs of a heart attack
• Signs of a stroke
• Severe shortness of breath
• Bleeding that will not stop after 10 minutes of direct pressure
• Poisoning
• Complicated fractures
• Major injuries like a head injury
• Coughing up or vomiting blood
• Homicidal or suicidal feelings