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Lehigh Valley Health Network to Establish First Pediatric Emergency Department in the Region

Lehigh Valley, Pa. (Feb. 22, 2010) – Lehigh Valley Health Network (LVHN) is announcing plans to establish the first pediatric emergency department (ED) in the Lehigh Valley and surrounding area. The facility will be constructed in existing space adjacent to the current emergency department at Lehigh Valley Hospital-Cedar Crest in Salisbury Township. The project is tentatively scheduled for completion in the spring of 2011.

Richard MacKenzie, M.D., LVHN’s chair of emergency medicine says the existing emergency department at LVH-Cedar Crest cares for 13,000 children a year. He stresses that the creation of an emergency department just for children is important to the community because pediatricians and parents alike desire highly specialized care in a dedicated pediatric emergency department.

The planned pediatric ED would include 11 beds covered by specially trained staff to care for children, including dedicated pediatric emergency medicine physicians, pediatric emergency nurses and a child life specialist to assist children and their families with the psychological and social issues of an emergency room visit.

Dr. MacKenzie says there also will be a separate waiting area for children and their families. "A child-friendly atmosphere is critical," he says. "It is often very difficult for children, particularly young children, to be in an environment where adults are suffering from illness or injury."

Dr. MacKenzie says a child-friendly atmosphere can help make the pediatric emergency department as painless as possible.  According to Dr. MacKenzie, research shows severe pain and worry can stick with children for a long time and even permanently.  He says the goal will be to manage a child’s pain through staff education, consistent assessment criteria, implementation of protocols and technological advances.

Dr. MacKenzie says the creation of a pediatric emergency department at other hospitals around the country also has shown that a separate pediatric emergency department can further reduce wait times for both child and adult emergencies. The space we free-up in the existing emergency department by creating a dedicated pediatric emergency department will allow us to care for more adult patients.

John Van Brakle, M.D., LVHN’s chair of pediatrics says an emergency department dedicated to serving the needs of children is the next logical step for the community. We currently offer our young patients and their families access to a wide range of specialty care services, including a specialty care center, pediatric intensive care unit-the only one in the region, neonatal intensive care unit and the most experienced trauma center in the region treating adults and children. A pediatric emergency department would take the care of children, especially those with special health care needs, to the next level.

LVHN is an associate member of the National Association of Children’s Hospitals and Related Institutions (NACHRI), the only health network in the Lehigh Valley region to attain that designation. "Providing the highest quality emergency care services for children requires an infrastructure designed to coordinate, support and constantly improve care for pediatric patients, said Sue Dull, director, child health and financing at NACHRI.  The specialized knowledge and experience of staff, family-centered approach, unique medical equipment, and comforting and reassuring environments found in pediatric emergency departments are indispensable to all children needing emergency care."

LVHN is staffed by more than 60 local pediatric specialists in 26 care areas including pediatric oncology, pediatric hematology, pediatric surgery, pediatric anesthesiology and pediatric radiology. A pediatric intensivist/hospitalist is in-house 24/7 to cover the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU), inpatient pediatrics and consults throughout the hospital.  In addition, a neonatologist and neonatal nurse practitioner are in-house 24/7 to cover the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).

In addition to a pediatric specialty center, outpatient/ambulatory services consist of a ten-bed pediatric ambulatory surgery unit (PASU), outpatient pediatrics (hospital-based primary care pediatric clinic), and a network of community pediatricians and family practice physicians. Inpatient pediatric specialists include pediatric respiratory therapists, pediatric focused pharmacists, pediatric occupational, physical and speech therapists, and pediatric nutritionists.

Lehigh Valley Health Network offers advanced care for brain tumors.  LVHN uses the team approach for diagnosing and treating patients.  All physicians and staff collaborate to determine the best treatment plan.

There are several types of brain tumors, including acoustic neuromas, astrocytomas, chordomas, glioblastoma multiforme and metastatic brain tumors.  Brain tumors can be benign or malignant.

Brain Tumor Treatment

Brain tumors require immediate attention, and the LVHN neurosurgery team will provide the best treatment plan for the best chances for a full recovery.

For additional information regarding the quality brain care Lehigh Valley Health Network has to offer, visit lvhn.org/neurologicalcare and/or call 610-402-CARE

Your primary care doctor should provide quality care and meet your needs. It is important to research your primary care doctor and openly discuss your goals and the care you expect to receive.  Does the doctor explain terminology clearly and to your understanding? Is she recommended by other patients? Does he treat you with respect?

For the easiest and most reliable way to choose the right primary care doctor at Lehigh Valley Health Network, call 610-402-CARE.

It is important to see your primary care doctor regularly.  If you do not have a primary physician or if you are considering switching doctors, Lehigh Valley Health Network has hundreds of doctors for you to choose from.  There are six kinds of primary care doctors:

• Family medicine doctors
• Internal medicine doctors
• Adolescent medicine physicians
• Gynecologists
• Geriatricians
• Pediatricians

For the easiest and most reliable way to find the right primary care doctor, call 610-402-CARE.

Lehigh Valley, Pa. (Dec. 22, 2009) –  Eight heart specialists who treat patients at Lehigh Valley Health Network (LVHN) are included on the Best Doctors in America list for 2009-2010. They are James A. Burke, M.D., William G. Combs, M.D., David A. Cox, M.D., Ronald S. Freudenberger, M.D., J. Patrick Kleaveland, M.D., Normal Marcus, M.D., Joseph Neri, D.O., and Raymond L. Singer, M.D., and are among the 66 LVHN physicians in 30 specialties that appear on the list.

The Best Doctors in America list, created by Best Doctors, Inc., results from a confidential polling of  physicians in the United States who are on the previous Best Doctors in America list. They are asked, “If you or a loved one needed a doctor in your specialty, to whom would you refer?�

Doctors in over 400 subspecialties of medicine appear on this year’s list, representing 50,000 doctors in the country. They are included on a database of experts made available to individuals through employee benefits plans and insurance programs.

Burke is associate chief of cardiology at LVHN and a member of Lehigh Valley Heart Specialists (LVHS); Combs is an interventional cardiologist at LVHN and member of The Heart Care Group (HCG); Cox is a member of LVHS, an interventional cardiologist and associate medical director of the cardiac catheterization laboratory at LVHN; Freudenberger, is acting chair of cardiology at LVHN, medical director of LVHN’s Center for Advanced Heart Failure, and a member of LVHS; Kleaveland is medical director of the cardiac catheterization lab at LVH-Cedar Crest and an LVHS member; Marcus is an electrophysiologist and a member of HCG; Neri is a medical cardiologist and member of HCG; and Singer is a cardio-thoracic surgeon and member of Lehigh Valley Heart and Lung Surgeons.

Doctors cannot pay to be included on the Best Doctors list, nor are they paid to provide their input. The list results from validated peer review, in which doctors who excel in their specialties are chosen.

According to Best Doctors, Inc., the experts who are part of the Best Doctors database provide the most advanced medical knowledge to patients with serious conditions. In addition to cardiology and cardio-thoracic surgery, experts from LVHN named on the Best Doctors in America list practice in the following subspecialties: allergy and immunology, anesthesia, colon-rectal surgery, dermatology, endocrinology, family medicine, gastroenterology, hand surgery, hematology-oncology, infectious diseases, internal medicine, nephrology, neurology, neurosurgery, nuclear medicine, obstetrics and gynecology, ophthalmology, orthopedic surgery, physical medicine and rehab, plastic surgery, pediatrics, radiation oncology, radiology, rheumatology, surgical oncology, urology and vascular surgery.

Lehigh Valley Health Network includes three hospital facilities – two in Allentown and one in Bethlehem, Pa.; eight health centers caring for communities in four counties; numerous primary and specialty care physician practices throughout the region; pharmacy, imaging and lab services; and preferred provider services through Valley Preferred.   Specialty care includes trauma care at the region’s busiest, most-experienced trauma center treating adults and children, burn care at the regional Burn Center, kidney and pancreas transplants; perinatal/neonatal, cardiac, cancer, and neurology and complex neurosurgery capabilities including national certification as a Primary Stroke Center.  Lehigh Valley Health Network has been recognized by US News & World Report for 14 consecutive years as one of America’s Best Hospitals and is a national Magnet hospital for excellence in nursing. Additional information is available at lvhn.org and by following us on facebook.com/LVHealthNetwork and twitter.com/LVHNnews.

Award Recognizes Environmental Leadership and Commitment to Pollution Reduction

PHILADELPHIA (December 17, 2009) — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recognized Lehigh Valley Health Network with the Trailblazer Award for its environmental leadership in a ceremony today at Lehigh Valley Hospital.

EPA’s Trailblazer Award recognizes hospitals in Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Delaware that have served as models for other hospitals and shown leadership in moving their facilities toward sustainable practices. These hospitals are helping pave the for all area hospitals.

“The Lehigh Valley Health Network deserves credit for taking positive steps to reduce waste, improve purchasing practices, and invest in reusable rather than disposable products,� said EPA Regional Administrator Shawn M. Garvin.. “Hospital management is successfully demonstrating leadership and innovation in reducing their environmental footprint.�

The Lehigh Valley Health Network is receiving the Trailblazer Award for establishing programs that are resulting in reductions in the health network’s carbon footprint, including an extensive recycling program; green cleaning programs; drought-resistant gardens; environmentally-preferable purchasing practices; sustainable food practices and wellness programs; LEED-certified buildings; rooftop solar panels; and computer power management and conservation programs.

Medical care in the U.S. is about one-sixth of the nation’s economy. Since 1998 EPA has been working with the healthcare sector to reduce its environmental impact and to help find solutions for reducing pollution, which can make an enormous difference in environmental health and the financial bottom line.

 For more information, go to: www.epa.gov/Region3/green/healthcare2009_07_02.html

Lehigh Valley, Pa. (Dec. 3, 2009) – Lehigh Valley Hospital (LVH) is being nationally recognized by two ratings organizations for quality, innovation and efficiency.

LVH is cited as one of the 10 Best Hospitals in America for 2009 by Becker’s Hospital Review, a leading business and legal health care publication, hospitalreviewmagazine.com; and The Leapfrog Group, leapfroggroup.org, lists LVH among the 2009 Leapfrog Top Hospitals. LVH is listed for the third straight year and is the only Pennsylvania hospital included among 37 general hospitals recognized by Leapfrog, a group of employers who purchase health care benefits for their employees.

LVH is joined on the Becker’s Best Hospitals list by other notable health care providers including Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore; Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston; and Mayo Clinic, which also joins LVH on the Leapfrog list along with others including Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston; Northwestern Memorial Hospital, Chicago; and Vanderbilt University Hospital in Tennessee.

“This year’s class of Top Hospitals not only hits the mark in areas such as medication error prevention and preventing ICU deaths, but they also use their resources wisely, providing excellent and efficient outcomes for patients,� said Leah Binder, CEO, The Leapfrog Group. “Regardless of what happens to health care reform, these hospitals are the future.�

Among the criteria for consideration by Leapfrog are:

• Fully meet Leapfrog standards for implementing computer physician order entry (CPOE) systems (that have been shown to reduce medication errors by up to 85 percent), and for passing Leapfrog’s test of their system;

• Fully meet stringent performance standards for complex, high-risk procedures (such as heart bypass surgery) done in that particular hospital;

• Fully meet standards for staffing the ICU, shown to reduce mortality by 40 percent or more;

• Score in the top decile in the country for efficiency – scored by the Leapfrog Hospital Recognition Program incorporating quality outcomes, length of stay, readmission rates, and incidence of hospital-acquired conditions and infections. The efficiency standard applies to heart bypass surgery, heart angioplasty, heart attack and pneumonia patients.

Becker’s calls LVH a “beacon for every hospital� as we face the current recession citing how it has “thrived at a high-quality level� despite the difficult economic times. LVH is noted in Becker’s review of the top 10 hospitals for being recognized by other top hospital ratings services and publications including US News & World Report’s “America’s Best Hospitals� for 14 consecutive years.

Lehigh Valley Health Network includes three hospital facilities – two in Allentown and one in Bethlehem, Pa.; eight health centers caring for communities in four counties; numerous primary and specialty care physician practices throughout the region; pharmacy, imaging and lab services; and preferred provider services through Valley Preferred.   Specialty care includes trauma care at the region’s busiest, most-experienced trauma center treating adults and children, burn care at the regional Burn Center, kidney and pancreas transplants; perinatal/neonatal, cardiac, cancer, and neurology and complex neurosurgery capabilities including national certification as a Primary Stroke Center.  Lehigh Valley Health Network has been recognized by US News & World Report for 14 consecutive years as one of America’s Best Hospitals and is a national Magnet hospital for excellence in nursing. Additional information is available at lvhn.org and by following us on facebook.com/LVHealthNetwork and twitter.com/LVHNnews.

Thanks to advancements in today’s medical technology, Lehigh Valley Health Network is home to leading-edge equipment that offers treatment for high-risk patients.  

Lehigh Valley Health Network is recognized nationwide as a leader in teamwork and quality, and continues to strive for excellence.  The LVHN logo represents the three things that drive its work: patient care, education and clinical research, all of which creates high-quality health care in Pennsylvania.

For additional information about this PA Hospital, please visit lvhn.org or call 610-402-CARE.

Lehigh Valley Health Network provides a variety of services. It is known as one of the best heart hospitals and is known for its technologically advanced brain care.  The health network’s staff practices with a team approach to patient care. LVHN also is largely involved in the community and provides quality care close to home.

For additional information, call 610-402-CARE or visit lvhn.org

Lehigh Valley, Pa. (Nov. 12, 2009) – The AIDS Activities Office (AOO) at Lehigh Valley Health Network (LVHN) and the Allentown Health Bureau will co-sponsor a World AIDS Day conference on Tuesday, Dec. 1 at the Historic Hotel Bethlehem.  The theme of the conference is “HIV: The Aging of a Growing Population.�

The keynote speaker this year is Jane Fowler, who describes herself as "the original 1950s good girl." To her, HIV was something that happened to others. She didn’t consider herself at risk, so testing positive at the age of 55 was a huge shock.

In 1995, Fowler became inspired to fight back. Today, she speaks publicly throughout the United States about her experiences of living with HIV.  Her story is not just a cautionary tale to women and men who think they aren’t at risk because of their age or their small number of sexual partners. Today she is director of HIV Wisdom for Older Women, a national program that she founded in 2002 and now runs out of Southwest Boulevard Family Health Care in Kansas City. She was also the national coordinator of the National Association on HIV Over Fifty.

The World AIDS Day conference is open to all HIV agencies and care givers and is approved for continuing education credits.  The cost is $25 in advance and includes breakfast and lunch. For more information call the AIDS Activities Office at Lehigh Valley Health Network at 610-969-2400, or email aao.hcc@lvh.com.

Established by the World Health Organization in 1988, World AIDS Day serves to focus global attention on the devastating impact of the HIV/AIDS epidemic.  Since 1998, the Allentown Health Bureau and the AIDS Activities Office at Lehigh Valley Health Network have co-sponsored the World AIDS Day conference bringing regional experts in the field of HIV/AIDS to the Lehigh Valley.

Lehigh Valley Health Network includes three hospital facilities – two in Allentown and one in Bethlehem, Pa.; eight health centers caring for communities in four counties; numerous primary and specialty care physician practices throughout the region; pharmacy, imaging and lab services; and preferred provider services through Valley Preferred.   Specialty care includes trauma care at the region’s busiest, most-experienced trauma center treating adults and children, burn care at the regional Burn Center, kidney and pancreas transplants; perinatal/neonatal, cardiac, cancer, and neurology and complex neurosurgery capabilities including national certification as a Primary Stroke Center.  Lehigh Valley Health Network has been recognized by US News & World Report for 14 consecutive years as one of America’s Best Hospitals and is a national Magnet hospital for excellence in nursing. Additional information is available at lvhn.org and by following us on facebook.com/LVhealthnetwork and twitter.com/LVHNnews.