KNI Unveils New Inpatient Floor in UK Chandler Hospital Pavilion A
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LEXINGTON, Ky. (July 21, 2022) - UK HealthCare’s Kentucky Neuroscience Institute (KNI) officially unveiled its new inpatient unit on the fifth floor of the University of Kentucky Albert B. Chandler Hospital Pavilion A on Thursday. Patients will begin occupying the floor this weekend.
“At UK HealthCare, we are focused on solving the health problems of Kentuckians,” said Mark F. Newman, M.D., UK executive vice president for health affairs. “With the opening of the fifth floor of Pavilion A, we’re taking another step toward improving treatment and outcomes for people who experience neurological health problems including stroke, epilepsy and more. With our cutting-edge monitoring technology, the expertise of the best neurologists in the state, and the new and improved amenities for patients and families, this new floor helps further our vision to create a healthier Kentucky.”
The new fifth floor puts units focused on providing comprehensive care for patients with complex neurological disorders together in one centralized location. The new floor spans across Pavilion A’s Tower 100 and Tower 200 and covers more than 66,000 square feet. The space houses 32 progressive care rooms, 20 neurologic intensive care (NICU) rooms, and a 12-room epilepsy monitoring unit (EMU) – which will make UK home to the largest EMU in the state.
The EMU will utilize state-of-the-art continuous video-electroencephalogram (EEG) monitoring technology to evaluate, diagnose and treat patients with possible epilepsy. An EMU that is incorporated and adjacent to the NICU creates an ideal flow for complex neurological patients.
“The entire epilepsy care team and I are so thrilled about the opening of our new Epilepsy Monitoring Unit (EMU),” said Meriem Bensalem-Owen, M.D., Medical Director for KNI’s NAEC Level 4 Epilepsy Program. “After much anticipation and careful planning, our new 12-bed adult EMU will offer patients and their loved one’s spacious private rooms and enhanced design that is focused on patient safety and comfort. This is our commitment to Kentuckians and to patients from the region, and beyond. "
The unique design and layout of the floor will bring staff and providers to the patient’s bedside rather than the other way around. In addition to 64 inpatient rooms, the new fifth floor also houses its own physical/occupational therapy gym and a radiology suite with a portable CT scanner that can go directly to a patient’s bedside. Both features will greatly enhance a patient’s treatment by having those services available without having to travel to a different area of UK HealthCare.
The new inpatient floor also allows easy access to UK HealthCare’s new neuro-interventional Radiology (NIR) procedure space. The NIR space contains 43 prep/recovery beds with multiple new angio suites, including two biplane suites, and an intraprocedural CT for complex cases.
“The new inpatient neuroscience unit brings state-of-the-art technology together with comprehensive patient management to deliver optimal care to our patients. We see each patient’s admission as a story that must be of the highest quality start to finish,” said Justin Fraser, M.D., director of cerebrovascular surgery in the Department of Neurological Surgery at UK HealthCare, and surgical director of UK’s Comprehensive Stroke Center.
KNI offers the most advanced and robust set of specialty care in the state as the only hospital in the area maintaining the standards required to receive the highest accreditations available in all of the following areas of care: stroke, epilepsy, ALS and multiple sclerosis. No matter the condition, UK HealthCare is determined to help patients overcome it while also meeting the needs of their loved ones.
“The new KNI inpatient unit was designed with the help of UK neurology and neurosurgery faculty, nurses, and staff. This new space is specifically dedicated to the care of patients with complex neurological disorders in an environment that also supports their families and friends,” said Larry Goldstein, M.D., Ruth Louise Works Endowed Professor, chairman of UK College of Medicine’s Department of Neurology, and co-director of KNI.
In addition to a focus on patient care, the new fifth floor contains kitchenette spaces for families and visitors staying for long periods of time to offer convenient and more affordable meal options. There is also a dedicated lactation space and the lounge areas within the floor were created to be warm, inviting, and comfortable.
As the state’s flagship, land-grant institution, the University of Kentucky exists to advance the Commonwealth. We do that by preparing the next generation of leaders — placing students at the heart of everything we do — and transforming the lives of Kentuckians through education, research and creative work, service and health care. We pride ourselves on being a catalyst for breakthroughs and a force for healing, a place where ingenuity unfolds. It's all made possible by our people — visionaries, disruptors and pioneers — who make up 200 academic programs, a $476.5 million research and development enterprise and a world-class medical center, all on one campus.
In 2022, UK was ranked by Forbes as one of the “Best Employers for New Grads” and named a “Diversity Champion” by INSIGHT into Diversity, a testament to our commitment to advance Kentucky and create a community of belonging for everyone. While our mission looks different in many ways than it did in 1865, the vision of service to our Commonwealth and the world remains the same. We are the University for Kentucky.