UnityPoint Health-St. Luke’s unveils recent emergency department remodel

SIOUX CITY (KTIV) - The Emergency Department at UnityPoint Health-St. Luke’s has expanded and finished renovations.

The department started renovations in October 2024 and finished up in January 2025.

UnityPoint Health expanded the waiting room in a new area of the hospital and now has a total of 32 rooms where patients can be seen.

The emergency department is highly utilized, and the foundation was able to partner with MRHD for a $200,000 grant awarded in October 2023.

The ER director says there has been an increase in patients using their facilities and wanted to better serve those who come in during emergencies.

There was also a procedure change where they “pull til full,” which means each room will be filled with a patient before anyone has to wait in the waiting room.

“With all of the volume that we were seeing, patients were frustrated with the small space that they were confined in, and it really made the experience of the waiting time less than ideal. Oftentimes, people are like ‘Oh, they don’t look very busy.’ But in all reality, behind closed doors, our rooms are all full, and we’re just trying to expedite care,” said Taffy Zoelle, Director of Emergency and Pediatrics at UnityPoint Health.

The goal was to access patients faster for a more streamlined process for everyone involved.

“They’re seen in a timely fashion so that we can start answering questions, calm fears, and make sure they’re getting the best possible care. And so that’s why this space is so important to us,” said Kari Winklepleck, President of the St. Luke’s Foundation.

The Siouxland Miracle Riders also helped support funding for a pediatric modern room in the emergency department.

“They are rooms that provide a safe place from the ceiling to the furniture all the way down so that we can help those individuals and get them to the right place that they need to continue getting better,” said Winklepleck.

There are three new triage rooms, so someone with a low acuity reason for the visit, like stitches or ankle fractures, can be seen rapidly by a doctor.

Hallway beds are also included, with an additional ten beds.

There are also four behavioral health rooms; any patient can be seen in those rooms, but there is one specifically for the kids.

The emergency department is located at the back side of the department with its own separate entrance for all emergency needs in the Siouxland community.

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