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PITTSBURGH, May 10 /PRNewswire/ -- Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC is just one year away from opening its new state-of-the-art hospital campus.

(Photo:

http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080510/NESA001 )

When the new Children's Hospital opens in May 2009, it will set the standard for pediatric care nationwide. The new hospital building will serve as the centerpiece of the multi-phase development project that is situated on a 10-acre campus. Located in the Lawrenceville section of Pittsburgh, the new campus is one of the most ambitiously planned pediatric hospitals in the nation and includes an electronic health record that will make the hospital "paperless," environmentally friendly/green design, high-quality patient safety innovations; vehicles to achieve family comfort, cutting-edge research and premier pediatric clinical care.

"Children's new hospital campus will enable us to further advance pediatric health care for children of the local region and throughout the United States who come to us for care," said Roger A. Oxendale, Children's CEO. "The new campus will offer a setting for compassionate, state-of-the-art clinical care and top-quality academic pediatric programs - truly serving as one of the premier pediatric providers in the world."

Technological Sophistication

The new hospital incorporates an unprecedented level of technology that will advance patient care, reduce human error, and improve patient, visitor and staff safety while providing operating efficiencies to manage costs effectively. Children's will be among the first fully digital hospitals in the country.

For instance, Children's will be entirely "paperless," with a Computerized Provider Order Entry system as well as an electronic health record for every patient. Caregivers will be able to make order entries, report test results and view diagnostic images online. The campus' technology is designed foremost with patient safety in mind, including a Patient Tracking System.

"Some of the infrastructure services for the new campus include a wireless data network that will enable access to electronic health records, prescription writing and other clinical and non-clinical applications," said Christopher A. Gessner, Children's president. "On the new campus, power service cannot be interrupted. There also will be 100 percent access to Internet service as well as secure access to Children's computer network from anywhere in the world."

The technology also is designed for patient and visitor convenience, with amenities such as an entertainment system at every bedside, as well as in lounge and waiting areas.

Family Comfort

Children's is committed to making a visit to the hospital or a hospital stay easier for its young patients and their families. The new hospital design is based on ideas and suggestions from patients, family members and caregivers. The hospital's spacious private rooms will not only offer overnight accommodations for parents, but more importantly will reduce the risk of infection. Each room offers inviting colors and soft fabrics, a comfortable sleeping space for parents and a desk with data ports and Internet access.

The hospital also will boast the largest family resource center of any pediatric hospital in the world, a 20,000-square-foot Elsa M. and Alma E. Mueller Family Resource Center with an atrium, chapel, library, healing garden and business center for working parents.

Research

Part of Children's new 10-acre site will include the 300,000-square-foot, 10-story John G. Rangos Sr. Research Center, which is more than twice the size of the current research facility. The expanded research capabilities will enable Children's to recruit top researchers and clinicians from around the world who specialize in pediatrics. It will substantially impact economic growth in the region.

Children's Hospital's is one of the fastest growing pediatric research programs in the country. In the last 20 years, research funding to Children's from the NIH has increased from less than $4 million to well over $20 million in 2006.

"The construction of our new campus in Lawrenceville visibly signals the beginning of a new era for children's health in Pittsburgh," said David Perlmutter, MD, physician-in-chief and scientific director at Children's Hospital and the Vira I. Heinz Professor and chair of the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. "The new research building and the hospital campus will only strengthen our efforts to ensure that the research conducted will ultimately result in healthier lives for all of the children in this region and throughout the country."

Environmentally Friendly

The new Children's Hospital is designed as a "green" campus, meaning that buildings will use key resources such as energy, water, materials and land more efficiently than buildings erected simply to building code.

"It's been established that green (or environmentally sustainable) buildings contribute to the improved health, comfort and well-being of everyone who passes through, including patients visitors and staff, by utilizing more natural light and promoting better air quality," Oxendale said. "We have designed a hospital campus that will transform the lives of those we care for and of those who are providing the care."

In addition to using environmentally sustainable and local resources (everything from building materials to cleaning supplies), Children's will establish a "green" education program for staff, patients and visitors; install a "healing garden" for patients and visitors; and install air filtration and water fixtures that improve air quality and reduce waste.

About Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC

Renowned for its outstanding clinical services, research programs and medical education, Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC has helped establish the standards of excellence in pediatric care. From Ambulatory Care to Transplantation and Cardiac Care, talented and committed pediatric experts care for infants, children and adolescents who make more than 500,000 visits to Children's and its many neighborhood locations each year.

Children's also has been named consistently to several elite lists of pediatric health care facilities, including ranking eighth among children's hospitals (FY 2006) in funding provided by the National Institutes of Health, and consistently is named one of the best pediatric hospitals in the United States by U.S. News & World Report.

For more information about the new Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, including a virtual tour of the new campus/hospital, construction updates, renderings and more, please visit www.chp.edu.

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Photo: NewsCom:

http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080510/NESA001
AP Archive:

http://photoarchive.ap.org/
AP PhotoExpress Network: PRN1
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
Source: Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC

CONTACT: Melanie Finnigan, +1-412-692-5502, +1-412-692-5016,
Melanie.Finnigan@chp.edu, or Marc Lukasiak, +1-412-692-7919, +1-412-692-5016,
Marc.Lukasiak@chp.edu, both of Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC

Web site:

http://www.chp.edu/

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