Nurse makes home in Fishers emergency department; $300M community investment is growing her impact

Work is underway to expand IU Health's footprint in Fishers. Emergency department Nurse Emily Thomas explains the impact to her team and patients.

By Justin Haberstroh, communications intern for IU Health's Indianapolis Suburban Region

Registered Nurse Emily Thomas joined the IU Health Saxony team a year ago after graduating from IUPUI’s accelerated nursing program.

“Once I got here my preceptor was great and eased me in,” Thomas said. “There was a learning curve in becoming the nurse that patients see now, but it was not difficult.”

Now full-time in the Emergency department, Thomas says the teamwork aspect of her job is the best part. She never feels like she is out on her own and she always has a support structure behind her to help.

“I love the teamwork aspect of working in the Emergency department, and I love the camaraderie we have with each other,” Thomas said. “I always feel like the team has my back.”

With the expansion of the IU Health Saxony campus and services, Thomas and her team are working around renovations in the Emergency department while ensuring there’s no impact on patient care.

Thomas’ leader, Natalie Zipper, manager of clinical operations for the hospital’s emergency department, emphasized that patients and visitors can still expect around the clock care when they need it most.

“Even though we are under construction, we are still able to see patients 24/7,” Zipper said. “We have worked closely with the design and construction team to ensure that we will never lose rooms during any phase of the construction.”

Patients and visitors who are familiar with the hospital may notice that existing pathways for patient and family travel from the Emergency department to patient restrooms, main registration, and the cafeteria will be impacted. Rest assured, the Emergency department continues to have two dedicated restrooms in the department for patient and visitor use, and escorts are available for those needing guidance to and from the cafeteria, pharmacy and other parts of the hospital. The Emergency department team also has extra snacks and drinks available for patients and visitors.

“Our team is dedicated to continuing to provide high quality, individualized care during the construction,” Zipper continued. “Our goal as a team is for our patients to have the same experience during the construction that they have come to expect from us prior to the construction.”

Once renovations are complete, the department will gain four patient rooms and 12 pediatric patient rooms.

Thomas is looking forward to the new space and the ability to care for more patients who need urgent care.

“I think the renovations will improve our flow as a team,” Thomas said. “Because we are growing so fast, these changes will allow us to work even better and care for more patients.”

The $300 million investment from IU Health will include a significant expansion of the IU Health Saxony Hospital campus and high-quality services. It will also add offsite, outpatient access to primary care and specialists to more holistically meet the needs of one of Indiana’s fastest-growing communities.

In recognition of this growth, this community investment will include a re-naming of the hospital campus to IU Health Fishers, to be phased in throughout the duration of the project.