Pittsburgh-area hospital expands 24/7 hospital service to include children
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — Parents in the North Hills and northern counties now have an alternative for acute pediatric care for their children in their own region.
As KDKA-TV money editor Jon Delano reports, Allegheny Health Network Wexford is expanding its hospital services to include 24/7 pediatric services.
Allegheny Health Network Wexford opened its hospital in the North Hills two years ago, offering emergency services to all ages, inpatient, and outpatient services for adults, including a labor and delivery unit that has delivered more than 2,400 babies. But now its services are expanding to include more children.
"We are very proud to announce that we just opened up our inpatient pediatric service line beds," said Carla Persia of Allegheny Health Network.
Rather than a trip Downtown, that means faster medical service 24/7 for children in the North Hills area, says Persia, the registered nurse responsible for the beds.
"If somebody's child has an acute illness, we can admit them overnight here," she said. "They come through our ED if they have something that comes on suddenly. They can be referred by their PCP to be a direct admission to our floor, and we also take care of post-operative patients who have orthopedic or ear, nose and throat surgeries."
Of course, AHN Wexford physicians and medical professionals say they will refer children to UPMC Children's Hospital in the city when necessary.
"If the child is critically ill or we think they might be going in that direction, we will still send them out to Children's. If they are acutely ill and it's a lower to medium acuity, we will keep them overnight here, and we can care for them here," Persia said.
Once at AHN Wexford, children will have a certified child life specialist to make their hospital stay as comfortable and even fun as possible.
"We are trained in the developmental impact of illness and injury, and what that really means is that we are here to support kids every step of the way through their hospital journey," said Kristen Berkowitz, a certified child life specialist at AHN Wexford.
And that means all kinds of fun things like toys and books, even an Austin's Playroom donated by the Lemieux Foundation for the siblings of those in the hospital.
"Really at the root of everything we do is play," Berkowitz said. "We're here to make your kid feel comfortable, to feel safe, and to feel successful in what can be a really scary environment for kids."
As for the 15 percent of children considered neurodiverse, meaning their brain works a little differently than others, ranging from dyslexia to ADHD to autism, AHN Wexford says it has special programs to make those children feel comfortable, too.
