Emergency Department

Recently renovated in 2024, our state-of-the-art Duddie Massad Emergency and Trauma Center is the only location in New England to hold the distinction of providing Level I trauma care for both children and adults.  Furthermore, the Pediatric Emergency Department (The Dr. Arthur and Martha Pappas Pediatric Care Pavilion) is the principal emergency service for children in Central Massachusetts.

Special features of the facility include:

• Fourteen private rooms and 6 fast track pods where infants, children and teens can be treated in a warm, caring environment as well as a dedicated pediatric waiting area
• A LifeFlight air ambulance (the busiest single air ambulance service in the country), plus an updated helipad
• Trauma rooms configured in a pod arrangement, allowing staff to move quickly from patient to patient in a multiple trauma incident
• Two dedicated radiology rooms with digital imaging for instant results and prompt diagnosis
• Advanced imaging capabilities, including a dedicated 40-slice CT scanner providing the highest quality imaging as well as two magnetic resonance imaging units 
• Three dedicated rooms to provide mental health care to children and teens, plus two transition rooms for treating patients with both medical and mental health conditions
• Child-friendly staff such as Child Life specialists to explain tests and procedures in a way that children understand

Pediatric residents are responsible for the initial evaluation and management of all medical, surgical and trauma patients younger than 18 years of age. Residents gain experience in performing diagnostic and therapeutic procedures such as lumbar punctures, suturing, stapling, splinting, bedside ultrasound, and intubations. Interns practice decision-making and diagnosis skills during day shifts; senior residents foster an independent role by helping supervise and teach during day shifts and develop autonomy during night shifts. Shifts are generally 7-10 hours in duration, with 24-hour emergency pediatric attendings on site. As of 2022, we are also home to the UMass Pediatric Emergency Medicine Fellowship program! Our pediatric residents benefit from the additional teaching, mentorship and educational curriculum offered through this program. Additionally, our ED is home to multiple other fellowships including Emergency Ultrasound, Disaster Medicine and Emergency Management, and Toxicology.