University of Iowa debuts new and improved ER, with dedicated pediatric space

IOWA CITY — After years of construction on its main-campus emergency room — spanning two stories, involving several departments, and expanding capacity across the high-demand space — University of Iowa Health Care on Wednesday debuted a new pediatric-specific emergency room within its larger now-finished new ER.

The university undertook the $37 million ER expansion and renovation without pausing care or closing its doors for any period of time by working in two phases.

The first — which started in 2023 and wrapped in December 2024 — involved a two-story addition to the south end of the existing ER, allowing UIHC to move its Crisis Stabilization Unit from Level 7 of the John Pappajohn Pavilion to Level 2 of the new ER. That, officials said, improved the speed and effectiveness of care for patients in a mental health emergency, while also improving staff safety.

The second phase to expand and renovate the department’s north end began in late 2024 and officially wrapped Wednesday — featuring a dedicated emergency space for children and teens that is both larger and more private, with two resuscitation rooms, a procedure room, dedicated triage rooms, and its own waiting room.

The space also offers more options for pediatric behavioral health patients, UIHC officials said.

“We understand having a child with a medical emergency can be a scary experience for families, and we kept this in mind as we worked through our expansion plans,” Andrew Nugent, chair and departmental executive officer for the UIHC Department of Emergency Medicine, said in a statement. “We asked ourselves, how do we create a state-of-the-art pediatric space designed with our youngest patients in mind? The result is an updated space that is brighter and offers a more healing environment to help calm our youngest patients.”

The UIHC pediatric ER features design elements incorporated across the 8-year-old Stead Family Children’s Hospital, including lighting and artwork.

To concerns families have expressed about exposing children to adult patients with a range of ailments in a single co-mingled waiting room, UIHC Pediatric Medical Director for the ER Sarah Miller said, “Having a separate waiting room will hopefully help alleviate any of the fears families may have about needing emergency care.”

In addition to pediatric-trained faculty and staff, the UIHC ER also is adding to its emergency team a child life specialist — someone trained in meeting the emotional needs of children and their families during their UIHC stay.

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Expand access

In addition to its new and improved main-campus ER, the UI Health Care system — with the April opening of its $525.6 million North Liberty hospital and its $37.4 million acquisition of a bankrupt Mercy Iowa City in January 2025 — now has three ERs.

All have “advanced capabilities and are equipped to handle and triage all types of emergencies” — although the main-campus ER is the “only Level 1 trauma center for both adult and pediatric patients in the state.”

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That level of certification means it’s capable of providing care for the most critically ill children and adults across the region.

The Downtown Campus ER — previously Mercy Iowa City — is a Level 3 trauma center, capable of offering “prompt assessment, resuscitation, surgery, intensive care and stabilization of injured patients, and emergency operations.” And the North Liberty ER is a Level 4 trauma center, offering “evaluation, stabilization, and diagnostic imaging for injured patients.”

“Our providers also have the expertise and trained staff to stabilize trauma patients prior to transfer to higher levels of care, if needed,” according to the UIHC North Liberty ER website.

In total, the university’s ER expansion and renovation added 17 net new adult and pediatric emergency care beds on its main campus — helping to meet what officials expect will be a 10-percent increase in ER visits over the next year.

While wait times on Wednesday afternoon were under 10 minutes at both the North Liberty and Downtown Campus ERs, the main campus ER wait still topped five hours just before 3:30 p.m. Wednesday.

“The emergency department expansion project is an example of how investing in modernizing our facilities helps us better fulfill our mission of clinical care, research, and education,” UIHC Vice President for Medical Affairs Denise Jamieson said. “More Iowans rely on us than ever before, making it critical to expand access to emergency and trauma care services. Having modern spaces, optimized for patient care and workflow, is an important first step to improving our efficiency and increasing access.”

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Vanessa Miller covers higher education for The Gazette.

Comments: (319) 339-3158; vanessa.miller@thegazette.com