OC’s Innovative Emergency Department Observation Unit

The Emergency Department Observation Unit (EDOU), also known as “ED Obs”, is a 20-bed wing of Douglas Hospital, which serves as an extension of UCI’s Emergency Department (ED). Opened in June 2015, EDOU is the only emergency observation unit in all of Orange County. It offers UC Irvine the ability to provide efficient and effective care to short-stay patients who do not meet criteria for admission to the hospital but require ongoing medical evaluation. 

Patients in EDOU receive care based on the latest clinical management pathways, each of which are based on accepted evidence-based guidelines and developed by ED clinical leadership and UCIMC specialty physicians. In fact, EDOU currently has 26 active unit treatment protocols, seven of which were developed in conjunction with medical subspecialists. As a result of these treatment protocols, over 4,000 patients per year receive care in the observation unit and avoid costly, lengthy, and risky inpatient hospitalizations.

The EDOU greatly enhances the ED’s ambulatory bed capacity and expands the scope of care and treatment that can be provided by the emergency medicine clinicians. While in EDOU, patients continue to have access to the full range of medical services provided in the ED, including diagnostic imaging, continuous cardiac monitoring, and access to specialist consultation as well as medical and nursing staff. As the needs of our patients change, EDOU will continue to evolve and its role will continue to expand in order for our institution to better provide emergency medical services to our community.