Imagine walking into a hospital or healthcare office and being greeted by your first name. Imagine feeling like you are surrounded by people who aren’t just caring for you, but who care about you. Imagine experiencing the best of innovative healthcare — stateof-the-art emergency rooms, radiation services, pediatric care and more — in an environment that is healing, calm, and convenient, rather than clinical and cold.
This isn’t a dream. This is Penn Highlands State College.
“This is really the first time we have been able to design a new hospital and medical office building around our culture,” says Rhonda Halstead, MSM, Regional Market President-Central Region, Penn Highlands Healthcare. “Penn Highlands State College offers evidence-based medicine and compassionate, caring staff.”
The new $70 million hospital and medical office building provide the same high
level of skilled and compassionate care offered by the health system’s other eight hospitals. But unlike the other facilities, the new complex was built from the ground up with Penn Highlands Healthcare’s patient-first approach at the foundation.
“We envision Penn Highlands State College setting the bar for our other hospitals in terms of what it means to truly provide compassionate, innovative, patientfirst care,” Halstead says. “Relational patient care, rather than transactional, makes a huge difference in healing. I’ve experienced it with my mom and my own health. That extra touch and compassion are important parts of the healing process.”
O.J. Johnston, Vice Chair, Penn Highlands Central Region Board of Directors, shares Rhonda’s sentiments. “There are never enough healthcare services in a community and by expanding our offerings with state-of-the-art technology, our known, trusted
compassionate care and the first new hospital in the area in quite some time, Penn Highlands State College is providing a new level of sustainable care for the unique demographic of State College,” he said.
Like LEGO® bricks are carefully constructed to create elaborate structures, Penn Highlands State College is thoughtfully weaving its patient-centric approach into every detail of the campus. Fittingly, LEGO bricks are being used to market the new campus, linking LEGO’s meaning, which is “play well” in Danish, with Penn Highlands Healthcare’s mission to improve regional access to the most advanced healthcare services so patients can live and play well. The patient-friendly design and convenient offerings echo the versatility and creativity symbolized by LEGO bricks.
This includes:
• Hiring the right people for the right positions. Penn Highlands State College is taking extra care in its hiring processes, placement of staff based on their strengths and personality traits and development of staff training. “It starts with making sure we have the right people in the right positions and training them to embrace a patient-first approach,” Halstead says.
• Quick check-in with the palm of your hand. Biometric patient identification will be implemented throughout the campus for quick, secure check-in and access to a patient’s medical records. While fingerprints and palm prints are unique to each patient, the palm print has more than 1,000 characteristics compared to around 100 for fingerprints, which provides added security. The biometric system uses an algorithm and hundreds of points of the palm to create a unique
digital key for each patient, which is only accessible to Penn Highlands Healthcare.
• Newest, most technologically advanced medical equipment. From high-tech operating suites to medical imaging and targeted radiation therapy, patients will benefit from the newest diagnostic and treatment technology. This includes a fully equipped Medical Imaging Department; state-of-the-art Surgical Department with three high-tech operating suites that include the Mako
SmartRobotics™ Joint Replacement Robot; an endoscopy procedure room; and the Penn Highlands Hahne Cancer Center.
• Convenient healthcare. A medical office building that will provide convenient care for all ages is located adjacent to the hospital. Primary care, pediatrics, imaging, lung care and more are offered on the same campus as the hospital, creating one-stop healthcare for Centre County residents.
For the most convenient, comfortable and innovative care close to home.
Community Open House
Saturday, June 15, 2024
10:00 AM to 1:00 PM
Tour Penn Highlands State College hospital. See our state-of-the-art facilities. Enjoy complimentary refreshments and giveaways.
Cancer Survivor Night
Saturday, June 29, 2024
6:35 PM
Cheer on the State College Spikes as Penn Highlands Healthcare sponsors Cancer Survivor Night at the Ballgame. Plus, it’s a fireworks night! Medlar Field at Lubrano Park.
Free State College Spikes Tickets!
Sunday, August 4, 2024
Join us for Penn Highlands Healthcare Ballpark Takeover Night. First 500* to register receive free tickets. Visit phhealthcare.org/tickets for game tickets.
*Up to two tickets per person.
Women’s Health Event
Saturday, September 14, 2024
11:00 AM to 2:00 PM
Learn about the latest advancements in women’s health from Penn Highlands Healthcare physicians and providers during Take Her Out to the Ballgame Women’s Health Event. Visit phhealthcare.org/events!
3 High-tech Operating Suites
an endoscopy procedure room and a Mako SmartRobotics™ Joint Replacement Robot.
When patients with COPD, asthma or another lung condition walk into Penn Highlands State College, they will be walking into a Lung Center that boasts some of the most advanced diagnostics and treatments typically associated with large urban medical centers.
Sandeep Bansal, MD, Medical Director of The Lung Center and Interventional Pulmonology at Penn Highlands Healthcare and a board-certified pulmonologist, has been treating patients in State College for two years.
“When I first arrived in the region (in 2011), there was not much presence in terms of advanced diagnostics and therapeutics,” Dr. Bansal says. “We grew the program from basically nothing into a world-class presence.”
Dr. Bansal was the first physician in Pennsylvania to perform bronchial thermoplasty for severe asthma (after its FDA approval) at The Lung Center at Penn Highlands DuBois. This was just one of the many advanced technologies that he and his team have pioneered in the region during the past 10 years.
15 % of Centre County residents are current smokers, and 14% of residents currently have asthma. Source: Pennsylvania Department of Health
With the opening of Penn Highlands State College hospital and medical office building, people in the region will be able to receive diagnostic bronchoscopies which can detect cancer, inflammation or infections that can cause persistent respiratory symptoms.
Based on his tenure in State College, Dr. Bansal expects to continue treating mostly patients with COPD, asthma and lung cancer. If a patient needs advanced specialty care, Dr. Bansal and team can treat them with other cutting-edge treatments including:
• Envisia Genomic Classifier
This non-surgical procedure obtains and tests lung tissue for 190 genes related to pulmonary fibrosis. This procedure alleviates the need for diagnostic lung surgery.
• Zephyr Endobronchial Valve
The Lung Center at Penn Highlands DuBois was the first facility in the region to offer this minimally invasive treatment for emphysema without the need for complex lung surgery. With the Zephyr Valve, which is performed in less than an hour, the diseased parts of the lungs are blocked off to allow for better air flow in healthier parts of the lungs.
“We grew the program from basically nothing into a world-class presence.”
Sandeep Bansal,MD, FCCP, FACP
• Robotic-assisted Bronchoscopy
Penn Highlands DuBois is one of the first hospitals in the U.S. to use the Monarch Platform robotic system to obtain tissue samples from small and hard-to-reach nodules in the periphery of the lung to look for lung cancer and other conditions, such as interstitial pulmonary disease.
Patients will also have access to clinical trials including those for new treatments for COPD, lung cancer and asthma.
“We are participating in more than 35 clinical trials in pulmonary medicine,” Dr. Bansal says. “It’s one of the largest pulmonary clinical research programs in the country.”
Dr. Bansal was instrumental in developing the Penn Highlands Lung Center, a comprehensive pulmonary program that allows a rapid assessment and management of healthcare needs based on the population characteristics and available resources. The model has been very successful in bringing advanced pulmonary services, including the latest technology and population health services such as a robust lung cancer screening program, to support the clinical needs throughout the region Meet
Dr. Bansal has been named one of the top physicians in the U.S. and has been awarded the fellowship of American College of Physicians (FACP) and American College of Chest Physicians (FCCP). He received the Proclamation Award from the Governor of the State of Pennsylvania in 2014 for outstanding achievements in pulmonary medicine and a philanthropic pledge award of $300,000 toward the advancement of The Lung Center from the Dennis D. and Rose E. Heindl Trust of Pennsylvania.
Local physician returns to provide cancer care in his hometown
Whoever coined the phrase “there’s no going home” never met James Lieb, DO, a board-certified medical oncologist and hematologist. When Dr. Lieb began treating cancer patients at Penn Highlands State College, this will be his third return home.
“Although this is a new hospital, the people and the town aren’t new to me,” says Dr. Lieb, who was born and raised in State College. “I’m a State College guy.”
At the Hahne Cancer Infusion Center located in State College, Dr. Lieb will be caring for patients with cancer and blood diseases. The largest part of his job is creating infusion therapy treatment plans for patients. Among those offered are standard chemotherapy, targeted therapies (drugs that seek out particular molecular targets to block) and immunotherapy (drugs that use the patient’s immune system to fight off cancer).
Pennsylvania residents have a 5.7% higher rate of cancer than in the US overall, according to the National Cancer Institute.
“Medical oncology has become more technical, more complex and more individualized,” Dr. Lieb says. “But it’s working. We’re keeping people alive longer and turning cancer into more of a chronic disease.”
“Opening the new Infusion Center will give Centre County residents more access to care, which will help decrease the amount of time patients have to wait to get treatment,” says Heather Franci, MBHA, BSN, RN, Service Line Director for Oncology Services.
“At the Hahne Cancer Center, we have medical oncology and radiation oncology, the full gamut of services,”
The incidence of breast cancer in Centre County is 13% higher than the Pennsylvania average, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Health.
Franci says. “A lot of patients need both types of therapy, so it’s convenient to have them together.”
For patients who need treatments not available at Penn Highlands State College, Dr. Lieb will work with his Penn Highlands colleagues in DuBois.
“Most patients will be able to get everything they need here,” Dr. Lieb says. “We follow the latest recommendations by the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN), which is the bible for all cancer centers. We can deliver care equivalent to Memorial Sloan Kettering or other large cancer institutions.”
In State College, the Hahne Cancer Center also offers radiation therapy to treat cancer tumors. Radiation therapy, or radiation oncology, is the use of highdose radiation to kill cancer cells. More than half of all cancer patients have radiation therapy as part or all of their treatment plan.
Penn Highlands State College offers the latest radiation therapy technology, using the Varian TrueBeam. The TrueBeam delivers precisely targeted radiation doses that are 40% to 140% higher than previous technology, making sessions shorter.
“Because radiation therapy is usually administered in multiple doses on consecutive days, often for several weeks, having this service close to home makes care easier on patients and families,” Franci says. Patients, for
A Women’s Imaging Center, located in the new Penn Highlands State College medical office building, offers a full range of services to help detect breast cancer, including:
• 3D Mammography
• Breast Ultrasound
•
•
A radiologist specially trained in breast imaging interprets all tests and provides the biopsy services.
example, might be able to use a local ride-sharing app to go to close-by appointments rather than needing to rely on a family member to take them to and from sessions farther away from home.
“The technological advancements have shortened session times and frequency, but most treatment plans require multiple visits,” she says.
No one wants to wait for care when you have a medical emergency. Staffed with board-certified emergency medicine physicians and featuring 10 private rooms as well as a trauma room, Penn Highlands State College’s Emergency Department offers patients quick, convenient access to top emergency care in Centre County.
“We are committed to a patientcentered approach, and that means no long wait times and ease of access for patients, in addition to offering cuttingedge technology, a skilled emergency medical team and coordinated patient care,” says Shane Sergent, DO, Penn Highlands Healthcare Central Region Medical Director of Emergency Medicine.
Typically, walk-in clinics — which also is offered at Penn Highlands State College — offer shorter wait times for patients with non-critical emergencies. But Sergent believes Penn Highlands State College’s ER will offer reduced wait times for all patients, compared with other providers in the area.
“We will always prioritize higheracuity patients but aim to treat every patient quickly,” Dr. Sergent says.
Because the ER is part of the hospital on Penn Highlands State College’s medical campus, it offers patients a one-stop location for imaging, diagnostic services, primary care, a pharmacy, inpatient care, and more.
So, whether you come to the ER or the walk-in clinic, you can be assured that you won’t need to leave campus for most of your needs.
“It’s really a hub where all care will be coordinated and patients will not need to go to multiple locations for their care,” Dr. Sergent says. “So, whether you come to the ER or the walk-in clinic, you can be assured that you won’t need to leave campus for most of your needs. And we’ll have the capabilities to stabilize and transfer high-acuity patients to Penn Highlands DuBois, a Level II Trauma Center, which is the only Level II Trauma Center in the region.”
Penn Highlands State College is one of the most technologically-advanced hospitals in the region, offering patients online registration, biometric patient registration for check-in with the palm of their hand, state-of-the-art operating rooms and access to a range of specialists from cardiologists to pulmonologists.
“I’m excited to come back to where I grew up and be part of this patientcentered approach to healthcare,” says Dr. Sergent, who has more than a decade of experience in emergency medicine and has won numerous awards including Physician of the Year. “Penn Highlands’ commitment to patient care is unique and makes such a difference for patients.”
When it comes to deciding between whether to go to an ER or a walk-in clinic, ask yourself: Could your injury or illness be addressed by a primary care physician? If it can, then a walk-in clinic is likely your best option. If you are in doubt or believe your condition is life-threatening, then an ER is the right call.
Penn Highlands State College’s medical office building offers family medicine with walk-in services for expert care for all ages.
To learn more visit phhealthcare.org/care.