PITTSBURGH — The failure of an air-handling unit Friday at the VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System’s University Drive campus forced the hospital to move 40 patients, a spokeswoman for the health care system said Saturday.
The air-handling unit was repaired by Saturday night.
Kathleen Pomorski said the failure of the air-handling unit made cool air flow unavailable to the three patient-care units it serves. As a result, 38 patients were moved to other available beds within the hospital and two patients were moved to other hospitals.
“We have taken steps to ensure every patient is informed, comfortable and receiving the appropriate level of care. During this time, our facilities team made arrangements to fix the air-handling unit, which involved obtaining a specific mechanical part,” Pomorski said in a written statement.
The campus’ emergency department has remained open, Pomorski said, but most medical and surgical admissions were diverted to other local hospitals and nearby VA medical centers.
Pomorski said the hospital had attempted to contact family members of the affected patients by Saturday morning. Anyone with questions can call the health care system’s information hotline at 412-360-1199.
Cox Media Group
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/XCUXZC2XYZHCRGNNGKFEX6U3LQ.png)
