Allegheny Health Network’s West Penn Hospital has opened a new Medical Intensive Care Unit (MICU) to expand its ability to care for critically ill patients. The unit, located at the hospital in Pittsburgh’s Bloomfield neighborhood, is dedicated to treating patients with severe medical conditions that do not require surgery. These include severe infections, respiratory failure, cardiac arrests, kidney failure, gastrointestinal bleeding, overdoses, diabetic ketoacidosis, non-surgical strokes, and post-bone marrow transplant complications.
The MICU features 18 beds and is expected to handle about 1,000 critical care admissions each year. It will be staffed around the clock by onsite medical intensivists and a team of advanced practice providers. The physician team will also serve as the tele-ICU support for all hospitals within the Allegheny Health Network system.
Through AHN’s centralized One Call Transfer Center, patient transfers and admissions from both inside and outside AHN facilities are expected to become more efficient. This expansion includes the creation of 100 new jobs in the local community.
Lou Baverso, chief operating officer of AHN and interim president of West Penn Hospital said: “The opening of our new MICU underscores our dedication to meeting the evolving health care needs of our community and our region. This expansion significantly increases our capacity for critically ill patients and enhances our ability to provide specialized, round-the-clock care, ensuring the best possible outcomes.”
Dr. Amit Kaura, medical director of the West Penn MICU added: “Our new MICU is another example of the advanced medical technology and highly specialized expertise available here at AHN West Penn. Every aspect, from our 24/7 intensivist coverage to our cutting-edge monitoring systems, is designed to deliver the highest standard of evidence-based care, ensuring the best possible outcomes for our most critically ill medical patients.”
AHN West Penn Hospital provides various services including emergency medicine, obstetric care and gynecological surgery options; it also houses a Level III Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), burn trauma center, surgical ICU and an oncology clinic offering cancer treatments among other specialties.
