Norwegian American Hospital officials are joining together with the union representing hospital workers to push for federal funding for a new emergency room.

The current one is “bursting at the seams” due to a surge in visits, hospital CEO Michael O’Grady said yesterday at an event aimed at bringing attention to the project.

Hospital officials say emergency room expansion is vital to the maintaining the ability to care for some 30,000 patients each year, and to enhance care for the poor.

The hospital normally treats over a hundred patients daily, and during peak periods, the mass of people awaiting treatment can spill out of the waiting room, forcing hospital staff to open a conference room for extra space.

“Under our existing facility limitations, the ones truly losing out are some of Chicago’s most vulnerable populations,” says O’Grady.

The hospital’s emergency room is split into two parts with 17 beds total; 12 beds are in the main ER and the smaller “fast-track” component has five beds.

The hospital is eyeing a parking lot outside the current ER for its expansion.