Dearborn County Hospital
Patient Tower

Dearborn County Hospital opened its new patient tower and adjacent areas on May 19.  In addition to the tower, an entirely new main hospital lobby, surgical waiting area, gift shop, entrance and canopy were constructed in front of the original hospital lobby.  The new lobby area features an abundance of comfortable seating in a bright and airy environment.  Natural stone and wood accents have been incorporated into the design to make the entrance and lobby warm and inviting for both patients and visitors. An enclosed walkway connects the parking garage with the lobby and a large drive-under canopy extends over the entrance for patient drop off and pick up.

The new patient tower is home to two nursing units.  The medical/surgical nursing unit on the first floor of the tower features 18 private rooms.  Patients on ventilators, those with telemetry monitoring or those requiring dialysis during their hospital stay may be cared for on this unit.  Twenty-four, spacious private patient rooms are also available for general medical/surgical use on the second floor of the new patient tower.

Each patient room has its own bathroom with a private shower, washbasin and commode.  The rooms are practical, yet beautifully decorated, and offer an array of amenities including flat screen televisions and window seats.  Areas are set aside within the room to provide comfortable seating for visitors as well as a work area for the patient's nursing and clinical staff.  Roomy waiting areas are also available for each nursing unit.

Located directly under the new main lobby on the ground floor is the patient registration area.   The patient registration desks are arranged in a semicircular fashion for additional patient privacy.

The newly constructed ground floor area of the patient tower connects with the hospital’s existing ground floor.  This has allowed for and will allow for the expansion of services in many ancillary departments of the hospital.

Of most significance is the acquisition of a state-of-the-art dedicated PET/CT (positron emission tomography/computerized axial tomography) scanner for the hospital’s imaging department. This unit expands the scope of imaging work that can be performed at DCH. It allows the hospital to perform scans to diagnose almost all common forms of cancer as well as to perform diagnostic cardiac and neurologic (Alzheimer/dementia) procedures.

PET scans distinguish normal from abnormal metabolic activity while CT scans identify the body’s anatomy.  The marriage of the two makes this application ideal for use in the diagnosis and staging of cancers.  In addition, PET/CT allows the physician to determine vitally important information regarding tumor size and location.  Statistics show that the results of a PET/CT scan can alter a cancer patient’s intended course of treatment in a significant number of cases.  Also new to the hospital’s imaging department is a 16 slice CT scanner and MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) of the breast.

The hospital is currently  remodeling areas of the existing hospital, including the patient rooms on the current surgical floor.  When all of the construction and the subsequent renovation have been completed, DCH will be an all private room hospital.