Room to Grow

On Thursday, we attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony / open house for the new emergency department at Canonsburg General Hospital. Congratulations to all those involved in the creation of this new $7.3 million addition! At 11,200 square feet, it's a welcome change from the cramped quarters of the old ER (only about 4,000 square feet in size). Hospital administrators say the new ER will be large enough to accommodate new patients stemming from the residential and commercial growth expected in coming years for the hospital's service area (which includes communities in the 46th District).

From the hospital's press release:

The new Emergency Department features cutting-edge equipment and 18 specialty examination rooms each with a sliding glass door and curtain to maximize patient privacy. Among those 18 rooms will be two trauma rooms and a decontamination area to treat patients involved in industrial accidents. All of the examination rooms will be equipped with cardiac monitors.

Other features within the new department include an enlarged entryway, a medical imaging suite, expanded family waiting areas, new cardiac monitor technology and increased office space for medical personnel. A medical imaging suite within the department will result in the following benefits:

-- The images will be digital allowing the technologist to optimize resolution and to send images to the radiologist and Emergency Department physicians within seconds, thereby decreasing turnaround time.

-- Waiting time is also decreased since the medical imaging suite is dedicated to emergency department patients only.

An outpatient surgical suite and enhancements to the ambulatory care department, including a more private patient triage area, larger waiting area, and surgical recovery room, are also part of the project.

A grant from The Mario Lemieux Foundation's Playroom Project for an Austin's Playroom was awarded to Canonsburg General Hospital. The playroom, one of 14 Austin's Playrooms in western Pennsylvania, will include child-size furniture, an aquarium, games, a television with a VCR/DVD player and toys. It is located within the family waiting area.

In addition to the state and federal grants that helped to make the new ER a reality, countless local organizations and individuals contributed funds for the construction of the new ER. But, even with this tremendous support, the ER fundraising committee is still seeking funds to reach its goal. Here's the address if you would like to send a contribution to support the new ER:

Canonsburg General Hospital
Attention: Fundraising Coordinator
100 Medical Boulevard
Canonsburg, PA 15317

Quick aside: State Senator Barry Stout was among the speakers at the ribbon-cutting ceremony. He noted he is now the third-longest serving member of the Senate. This makes him, he quipped, "the third oldest rat in the barn."