Newswise — The American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) will present the annual ICU Design Citation to the intensive care unit (ICU) at Excela Health Westmoreland Hospital, Greensburg, Pennsylvania, during the 2019 National Teaching Institute & Critical Care Exposition in Orlando, May 20-23.
The hospital invested $16 million to modernize the 22-bed ICU, with construction beginning in 2015. To create a safe, healing patient-centered environment, the hospital involved patients, families and all disciplines of the healthcare team from day one of the project through its completion in late 2017.
The design achieved a state-of-the-art efficient ICU that allows the healthcare team to provide the best care possible to its most acutely ill population.
Each patient room has more than 300 square feet and includes large windows for natural light, nurse servers with frequently used supplies, and computers with barcode scanning for bedside medication administration.
An interactive patient care system uses the GetWell Network, which integrates patient education through a 42-inch television with the patients’ electronic medical record, as well as staff members’ hand-held devices. The physiological monitoring system and nurse call systems function via dome lighting outside the patient room, with staff hand-held devices to limit noise from alarms.
The décor and finishes promote comfort and healing in a homelike atmosphere. A large but privately divided waiting room as well as an in-room family sleeping area allow the family to stay comfortable and involved in patient care.
The award — co-sponsored by AACN, the Society of Critical Care Medicine, Mount Prospect, Illinois, and the Committee on Architecture for Health of the American Institute of Architects, San Francisco — recognizes ICUs that successfully combine functional design with humanitarian delivery of care.
About the National Teaching Institute & Critical Care Exposition: Established in 1974, AACN’s National Teaching Institute & Critical Care Exposition (NTI) is the world’s largest educational conference and trade show for nurses who care for acutely and critically ill patients and their families. Bedside nurses, nurse educators, nurse managers, clinical nurse specialists and nurse practitioners attend NTI.
About the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses: Founded in 1969 with 400 members, the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) is the world’s largest specialty nursing organization. In 2019, AACN celebrates 50 years of acute and critical care nursing excellence, serving more than 120,000 members and over 200 chapters in the United States. The organization remains committed to its vision of creating a healthcare system driven by the needs of patients and their families in which acute and critical care nurses make their optimal contribution. During its 50th anniversary year, AACN continues to salute and celebrate all that nurses have accomplished over the last half century, while honoring their past, present and future impact on the evolution of high-acuity and critical care nursing.
American Association of Critical-Care Nurses, 101 Columbia, Aliso Viejo, CA 92656-4109; 949-362-2000; www.aacn.org; facebook.com/aacnface; twitter.com/aacnme
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