UPMC Passavant-Cranberry ED Provides Specialized Care for Pediatric Patients

By Vanessa Orr

In September 2008, the newly expanded emergency department at UPMC Passavant-Cranberry opened its doors. Since then, the number of pediatric patients using the facility has increased by over 50 percent. In order to take care of this growing population, the Emergency Department not only features the latest technology and most efficient design for providing patients with the highest quality care, but also a number of amenities to make even the smallest patients’ visits a more positive experience.

According to Ravi Vajjhala, MD, director of Emergency Medicine at UPMC Passavant-Cranberry , roughly 6,000 children were seen in UPMC Passavant-Cranberry’s Emergency Department last year during pediatric care hours. Pediatric emergency physicians from the faculty of Children’s Hospital are on staff at UPMC Passavant-Cranberry from 1 to 10 p.m., seven days a week.

“When emergency care is needed, it gives families in the community a sense of comfort knowing that they can bring their children to UPMC Passavant-Cranberry to see a specially trained pediatrician, without having to travel to Lawrenceville,” said Richard Saladino, MD, chief of Pediatric Emergency Medicine, Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC. “A lot of emergency issues can be managed in the UPMC Passavant-Cranberry ED, which increases the comfort levels of families and referring physicians.”

A number of changes were made during the hospital’s Emergency Department expansion, including tripling the space of the hospital’s former emergency room, adding a two-bed trauma bay and increasing the number of beds from 11 to 20. Within the emergency department, all of the beds are equipped in the same way so that they can be utilized in any kind of emergency, and a separate walk-in entrance was created at the front of the hospital to allow for quicker access. The main hospital building was connected to the building housing the imaging department and Comprehensive Breast Center to make traveling between the two facilities more convenient. The hospital’s Stroke Telemedicine System is also housed in the Emergency Department, which enables experts at the UPMC Stroke Institute to link to emergency room physicians on the Cranberry campus using state-of-the-art videoconferencing technology.

When the ED was expanded, five of the new rooms were dedicated specifically to pediatric patients. “The pediatric pod is a nice area for families and children,” said Dr. Saladino. “While each room has the same equipment in terms of providing emergency care, the area is more child-friendly.” Artwork on walls and in the halls creates a warm atmosphere, and a new addition, Austin’s Playroom, provides a place for children with health issues and their siblings to play.

Austin’s Playroom, which was opened in November of 2009, features age-appropriate games and toys, and an aquarium to provide waiting children and families with a safe, calm and comfortable environment. The room also features a freestanding kiosk developed by students at CMU that contains a touch screen where children can access coloring books and funny stories. “Families can spend time here before, during and after their children’s visits, which helps to lower children’s anxiety levels,” said Dr. Saladino.

The Playroom Project, an initiative of the Mario Lemieux Foundation, was born out of Nathalie Lemieux’s dream for children to have a safe, calm and comfortable place to play while waiting for treatment or for a sibling’s treatment. While tending to their profoundly premature son, Austin, in 1996, who was in the NICU for 71 days, the Lemieux’s wished that they and other families had had such a resource for their daughters, Lauren and Stephanie. Austin is now 13 years old, and each of the playrooms bears his name.

“It’s really tough on a parent to have a sick or injured child in the Emergency Department, and to deal with the child’s siblings at the same time,” explained Nancy Angus, executive director, The Mario Lemieux Foundation. “While the sick child is receiving attention from doctors, nurses and his or her parents, the child’s siblings may get lost in the picture.”

The Mario Lemieux Foundation also provides a mobile cart at hospitals that provides entertainment to children in treatment rooms. The carts are equipped with a TV, short DVDs, coloring books and more. “As emergency departments began shortening the time that people spent in waiting rooms, we realized that families were spending more time in treatment rooms, so we wanted to be able to go to them,” said Angus.

As the number of families with children continues to increase in the Cranberry area, UPMC Passavant-Cranberry is expanding to meet their needs. “We look forward to continuing to grow, and to build confidence in the surrounding communities and with referring physicians,” said Dr. Saladino. “We want people to know that we’re here to help them.”