A Raleigh hospital opened a new ICU this week. Take a look inside
A new intensive care unit opened at a Raleigh hospital this week.
The nine-bed unit began accepting patients Tuesday at WakeMed North Hospital, located at 10000 Falls of Neuse Road in Raleigh.
WakeMed North’s Emergency Department has experienced record volumes with increased patient acuity, Kristin Kelly, a senior specialist for marketing and communications at WakeMed Health & Hospitals, told The News & Observer in an email.
With the new ICU, the hospital will be able to offer a higher level of care and keep patients and their families in the northern Wake County area closer to home. Kelly said the hospital is the only one in northern Wake County with an ICU.
The unit is staffed with the same level of medical providers at WakeMed’s other two hospitals, in Cary and Raleigh.
Jimmy Lakey, the medical director of the ICU at WakeMed North Hospital, told The News & Observer’s newsgathering partner ABC11 that in the past, the hospital would send up to four patients to the Raleigh campus each day for intensive care.
Some people who need specialized ICU care, including extensive cardiac or neurologic, may still need to receive help at the Raleigh campus, ABC11 reported.
Last year, WakeMed North Hospital was named one of the top hospitals in North Carolina by The Leapfrog Group, a national watchdog group that ranks hospitals based on patient safety and quality of care, The N&O previously reported.
Valerie Barlow, the senior vice president and administrator for the hospital, said in a statement that the recognition “reflects our physicians’ and entire team’s commitment and dedication to exceptional care, quality and safety standards, and our mission to improve the health and well-being of the community we serve.”
This story was originally published July 10, 2024 at 12:53 PM with the headline "A Raleigh hospital opened a new ICU this week. Take a look inside."
