Advanced emergency care services
At Penn Medicine, our emergency medicine services go beyond what you find in a typical emergency room. We’re prepared for the most serious emergencies, accidents, and disasters.
Penn Medicine provides the most advanced care available for critically ill and injured people. We have two Level 1 trauma centers at The Pavilion for Advanced Care at Penn Presbyterian Medical Center and Lancaster General Hospital. Our trauma care is recognized as a national and international model of excellence and our patient outcomes are better than the national average.
When someone has a stroke, seconds count. All Penn Medicine locations have advanced stroke certifications from the Joint Commission, in recognition of our ability to rapidly and effectively treat people experiencing a stroke.
Our emergency medicine physicians are trained to quickly identify symptoms of a heart attack and other cardiac issues. Through our rapid-response protocols, you’ll receive timely, appropriate treatment.
Our specialized task force keeps our community safe by planning for disasters, such as influenza surges, weather emergencies, and widespread power outages.
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy involves breathing 100 percent oxygen in a pressurized chamber. This treatment delivers 20 times more oxygen that can travel through the body's bloodstream to injured organs and tissue. The additional oxygen speeds healing. We use hyperbaric oxygen for people with decompression sickness, serious infections, and wounds that have difficulty healing.
For some people experiencing a heart attack, lowering body temperature within six hours reduces the chance of brain damage and improves the chance of a full recovery. Penn Medicine is a pioneer in therapeutic hypothermia, offering this treatment for almost 20 years.
Our Division of Emergency Ultrasound has been a leader in the use of bedside ultrasound since 2001. We have five emergency ultrasound machines available to our doctors 24/7, allowing for fast, accurate diagnoses.
We’re one of only a few centers in the country offering emergent cardiopulmonary bypass (ECPB) to stabilize people who don't respond to standard resuscitation methods. We also specialize in treating sepsis, respiratory failure, and oncology or organ transplant-related emergencies.
Our staff includes board-certified physicians with hands-on experience treating infants through teens. If your child has a serious or immediate health issue, especially outside your pediatrician’s regular office hours, we offer prompt, expert care.
Our Division of Medical Toxicology offers advanced care for people experiencing poisoning or adverse effects of medications. We’re leaders in toxicology education and research and consult with the Philadelphia Poison center to help patients throughout the Delaware Valley, as well as experts at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.
For people with severe and immediate mental health emergencies, we coordinate with local resources to offer acute psychiatric services and interventions.
Our SAFE program offers assistance for victims of sexual assault or personal violence. You’ll receive compassionate care and immediate attention from professionals trained to support you in these situations.
The PennSTAR Flight Program provides critical care air and ground medical transportation to the Tri-State Area within a 100-mile radius of Penn Medicine. Our three medical helicopters and two critical care ambulances provide rapid transport of critical care patients and on-scene services at the site of accidents and trauma-related incidents.