FARGO (AP) - Fargo's largest hospital has opened up seven new emergency rooms and another local hospital is planning to expand its emergency services.
Sanford Health officials say a $1.7 million expansion and renovation project has doubled the capacity the emergency center was designed to handle.
Officials say the addition has resulted in a more efficient suite of 27 emergency rooms to better handle almost 60,000 patient visits a year.
Sanford's emergency center is one of the busiest in the tri-state region, and sees almost twice as many patients as Sanford's hospital in Sioux Falls, S.D.
Officials at Essentia Health in Fargo tell the Forum that its 19-room emergency department also is experiencing an increase in visits, and there are plans to increase the capacity to as many as 35 rooms.