Mercy Medical Center-Des Moines announced it has opened what it said is the state’s first obstetrics emergency department. The OB ED, located in the Mercy East Tower, is staffed by OB hospitalists who are available on a 24-hour, seven-day-a-week basis for emergency pregnancy care. Care will start on arrival for women who are 14 weeks or more into pregnancy. Typically, hospital nurses evaluate emergency cases involving pregnant women in consultation with the patient’s doctor, who was often not present at the hospital. With the new service, patients will be seen by an OB ED hospitalist within 30 minutes. For patients who don’t have an obstetrician, an OB ED hospitalist will direct pregnancy care during her stay. Mercy spokesman Gregg Lagan said the hospital has hired eight OB hospitalists and a perinatologist to staff the department, which is located in the Women and Infants Center.