AHN breaks ground on small-format hospital in McCandless; 1 of 4 in the region
Allegheny Health Network broke ground Thursday on a small-format hospital in the McCandless Crossing shopping center.
Cynthia Hundorfean, president and CEO of AHN, said the hospital will enhance the scope of services the health care provider offers in the growing northern suburbs of Allegheny County.
“AHN McCandless will provide more convenient access to high-quality emergency care and other important health services,” she said. “It’s another great example of our patient-centered care philosophy, and we look forward to the positive impact the facility will have on those who live and work in this community.”
Unlike standalone emergency departments or urgent care centers, AHN McCandless will be a fully licensed small-format hospital that will be open 24 hours a day.
In addition to an emergency department and 10-bed inpatient unit, the hospital will provide diagnostic imaging, laboratory and other medical services.
AHN McCandless also will be a home to the health-care network’s women’s health services, including its infertility program. Area women and couples will have on-site access to in-vitro fertilization and other therapies in reproductive medicine.
McCandless council approved a land development application in late August for the four-story hospital and medical office building at the intersection of Duncan Avenue and McKnight Road.
In addition to McCandless, AHN and parent company Highmark Health have proposed small hospitals in Hempfield, Harmer and Brentwood as part of a plant announced last year to invest $1 billion in new facility construction and expansion and renovation of existing facilities during the next five years.
The plan includes a 160-bed hospital adjacent to the health network’s Wexford Health and Wellness Pavilion on Perry Highway in Pine Township. A groundbreaking for AHN Wexford Hospital was held Aug. 14.
The additional hospitals in the region are being built to help address lapses in the availability of medical treatment that will occur when a state-brokered consent decree expires in June 2019.
The consent decree was negotiated after the contract between Highmark and the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center expired in 2014.
The decree allowed some Highmark customers to continue using UPMC doctors and hospitals until next June.
Tony LaRussa is a Tribune-Review
staff writer. You can contact Tony at 724-772-6368 or tlarussa@tribweb.com or via Twitter @TonyLaRussaTrib.
