St. Luke’s Children’s Hospital opened recently in Fountain Hill, the latest expansion of St. Luke’s University Health Network.
“This new children’s hospital designation recognizes the incredible depth of pediatric expertise developed across our network over its long and storied history, including an array of specialty services added in recent years,” said St. Luke’s President and CEO Richard A. Anderson.
A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held June 20. 
The hospital adds to the Lehigh Valley’s robust health care network, which contributes to the growing region’s high quality of life, a factor that makes the region enticing for businesses to locate and expand.
“From routine checkups to unexpected illnesses and injuries, St. Luke's is prepared to deliver the best care for all the children in the communities we serve,” Dr. Jennifer Janco, St. Luke’s Chair of Pediatrics, said at the ribbon-cutting ceremony. “We are bringing more services, more talent, and more expertise to the region. St. Luke's has changed the landscape of pediatric care. And we will continue to do so.”
St. Luke’s University Health Network became a member of the Children’s Hospital Association in 2022. In about the past year, it opened St. Luke’s Pediatric Specialty Center - allowing families to coordinate multiple specialty appointments in the same day at one location – and renovated and relocated its 17-bed pediatric inpatient unit to include around-the-clock hospitalist coverage, support from pediatric trained respiratory therapists and specialty trained pediatric nurses, pharmacists, and pediatric surgeons.
In 2020, St. Luke’s Bethlehem Campus added a $5 million, eight-bed Pediatric Intensive Care Unit to provide advanced care to critically ill children.
“It's more than just one building we stand in front of today, but it's a collection of services spread throughout the community,” Janco said. “For team members who truly know how to tailor their approach to the pediatric patient and their families, we’re meeting you where you are for neonatal intensive care units, pediatric primary care offices or pediatric labs or specialist or inpatient pediatric units. All of this is St Luke's Children's Hospital services, and we are here for you where you need us and when you need us whenever that time might be.”
More than 61,000 people work in the health care and social services industry in the Lehigh Valley, making it the largest sector of the workforce. Employment has been growing at an annualized rate of 1.7% over the past five years.
St. Luke’s University Health Network is celebrating its 150th anniversary this year. Anderson recalled how the network was founded by giants of industry who made steel and operated railroads during the Second Industrial Revolution.
He said St. Luke’s is returning to its roots by opening the Children’s Hospital, as the health system first opened a children’s pavilion in 1890, with funds donated by industrialist Elisha Packer Wilbur.
“So, this new Children's Hospital recognizes the incredible depth of pediatric expertise even going back in those years,” Anderson said. “We will continue to improve. We will continue to focus on quality. We will continue to make sure that people who need care can receive it in their own communities. And if need be, they can come here for that extra special treatment.”
(Photo courtesy of St. Luke's University Health Network)