UnityPoint Health – St. Luke’s Hospital Emergency Department
Information
Number of patients waiting reflects the current number of patients waiting to be seen. This number changes frequently and is not exact.
Don't Delay Emergency Care
We are fully equipped to provide care for all patients, in all situations, all the time. St. Luke's Emergency Department is open 24/7. If you or a loved one experience symptoms of heart attack or stroke, do not hesitate to call 911. Any delay could result in long-term health effects or even death.
Not every illness or injury requires a trip to the Emergency Room, and because health matters don't always occur during convenient times, our Urgent Care and Express Care Clinics offer locations throughout the Cedar Rapids metro area to treat your family's minor illnesses or injuries when your primary physician is not available. For your convenience, we update our Urgent Care wait times online.
When You Should Go to the ER
- Symptoms of a heart attack, including severe chest pain, sweating and shortness of breath.
- Profuse bleeding or blood loss that continues even after direct pressure has been placed on the wound.
- Severe abdominal pain.
- Sudden dizziness, weakness, loss of coordination, balance or vision problems, which are signs of stroke.
- High fever and vomiting that continues nonstop for several hours.
- Signs of meningitis: severe headaches, neck/joint pain and stiffness, vomiting, high temperature, sensitivity to light (adults); high-pitched whimpering/crying, lethargy, fussiness, restlessness, high fever, vomiting, cold extremities, refusing food, pale or blotchy skin (babies, small children).
- Seizures lasting longer than five minutes.
- Injuries occurring from an accident or fall - intense back or neck pain, obvious compound fractures and/or dislocations of bones, deep cuts and severe burns.
Helpful resources:
- St. Luke's Emergency Department: (319) 369-7105
- My Nurse (24-hour FREE health information): (877) 242-8899
- Poison Control: (800) 222-1222
What Type of Appointment Do I Need?
Primary Care encompasses the comprehensive treatment of a number of diseases in symptoms and specialties including pediatrics, internal medicine and family medicine. Rather than specializing in one particular area of medicine, the physician is trained to meet all the needs of patients as one point of contact. Same-day appointments may be available. Call your clinic or log in to MyUnityPoint to schedule with your provider or a member of their care team.
Examples of symptoms and conditions treated by a primary care provider can include:
- Allergies
- Cancer screenings (for select cancers)
- Disease management (asthma, high blood pressure, diabetes, obesity, etc.)
- Long term care or treatment planning
- Managing existing conditions (migraines, depression, anxiety, arthritis, etc.)
- Medication refill and medicine checks
- Minor medical problems and injuries
- Ongoing symptoms (continued back pain, skin problems, etc.)
- Physicals/sports physicals
- Substance abuse
- Vaccinations
Urgent Care and Express treat minor medical problems and injuries that are not life-threatening, but need the attention of a health care provider. These are not an alternative to the emergency room, but offer the ability to get walk-in care without an appointment for all patient ages. Urgent Care is available after hours, weekends and holidays. Our Urgent Care Clinics can provide medical treatment for minor illness and injuries such as:
- Allergies
- Burns
- Colds
- Coughs
- Cuts (Stitches)
- Earaches or Ear Infections
- Fevers
- Minor Medical Problems and Injuries
- Minor Eye Care
- Flu
- Fractures (X-Ray On-Site at Most Locations)
- Infections
- Sore Throats
- Sprains, Including Sprained Ankles (X-Ray On-Site at Most Locations)
- Urinary Tract Infections (UTIs)
- Yeast Infections
- Certain Rapid Tests
Please note: Flu shots, physicals and/or sports physicals are not offered at every urgent care location.
*If you are experiencing chest pain or shortness of breath, please go to the Emergency Department or call 911 immediately. For less serious medical issues, such as physicals, medication refills or to leave a message for your primary care doctor, you can access your My UnityPoint patient portal 24/7!
Connect with a UnityPoint Health provider online using MyUnityPoint to access virtual urgent care. Virtual care doctors can diagnose, recommend treatment and prescribe medication when necessary for commonly treated conditions. Available every day, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. for individuals 2 years and older located in Iowa, Illinois, Nebraska and South Dakota.
Virtual care should be used for minor, common ailments and illnesses. Some examples, and the qualifying age to receive virtual urgent care for that condition, include:
| Condition | Virtual Urgent Care |
|---|---|
| Acne | 2+ |
| Burn | 2+ |
| Cold/Flu | 2+ |
| Cold Sores | 13+ |
| Constipation | 2+ |
| Cough/Upper Respiratory Infection | 2+ |
| Diarrhea | 2+ |
| Fever | 2+ |
| Head Lice | 2+ |
| Heartburn | 2+ |
| Headache/Migraine | 18+ |
| Joint Pan | 2+ |
| Rash | 2+ |
| Red Eye | 2+ |
| Sinuses | 2+ |
| Sore Throat | 2+ |
| Urinary Tract Infection | 13+ (female only) |
| Vaginal Infection (yeast/bacterial vaginosis) | 18+ |
| Vomiting | 2+ |
Emergency rooms are open 24 hours a day, seven days a week for severe or life-threatening conditions. Conditions that require emergency care include excessive bleeding, broken bones, chest pain or trouble breathing. Emergency services include diagnostic testing and access to specialists.
Examples of symptoms and conditions treated by emergency departments can include:
- Symptoms of a heart attack, including severe chest pain, sweating and shortness of breath.
- Profuse bleeding or blood loss that continues even after direct pressure has been placed on the wound.
- Severe abdominal pain.
- Sudden dizziness, weakness, loss of coordination, balance or vision problems, which are signs of stroke.
- High fever and vomiting that continues nonstop for several hours.
- Signs of meningitis for adults: severe headaches, neck/joint pain and stiffness, vomiting, high temperature, sensitivity to light or babies and small children: high-pitched whimpering/crying, lethargy, fussiness, restlessness, high fever, vomiting, cold extremities, refusing food, pale or blotchy skin.
- Seizures lasting longer than five minutes.
- Injuries occurring from an accident or fall - intense back or neck pain, obvious compound fractures and/or dislocations of bones, deep cuts and severe burns.
St. Luke's Emergency Services
When you have a medical emergency, every minute counts. Call 911 and tell first responders to take you to St. Luke's. Our Emergency Room is open 24/7. Our ER team is specially trained to respond rapidly, appropriately and efficiently to any health care emergency.
Did you know...
- St. Luke's beats the national average when it comes to fast heart attack care? It's a nationwide goal for ERs to open blocked heart arteries in 90 minutes or less. Last year St. Luke's average was 57 minutes and its fastest time was 15 minutes.
- St. Luke's is the only hospital in Cedar Rapids that earned the Chest Pain Center Accreditation from the American College of Cardiology. This certification is based on rigorous onsite evaluation of the staff's ability to evaluate, diagnose and treat patients who may be experiencing a heart attack. St. Luke's was the first hospital in Iowa to achieve this accreditation.
- For patients in rural areas, critical condition or who need transportation to distant facilities, our LifeGuard Air Ambulance is available around-the-clock to help transport patients in Iowa and surrounding areas to St. Luke's.
