PinnacleHealth System

PinnacleHealth System is a community-based, physician-led health care system serving the greater Harrisburg, Pennsylvania metropolitan area. PinnacleHealth operates five primary care facilities as well as a network of family practice and urgent care centers, managed care entities, home health-care, hospice, and an array of other healthcare services.

Since its establishment in 1996, PinnacleHealth has grown to a multi-county system with more than 800 primary care physicians supported by more than 4,000 skilled nurses and technicians, over $500 million in revenue, operates several for-profit health insurance subsidiaries and a network of 5 hospitals.

Two of PinnacleHealth's largest facilities, Harrisburg Hospital and Polyclinic Medical Center are teaching hospitals with a combined count of 884 inpatient beds, over 35,100 inpatient admissions and 235,000 outpatient visits per year as well as over 5,000 deliveries and 60,000 emergency room visits annually, making it one of the largest urban clinical institutions in the nation. It is the seventh largest employer in the Harrisburg area.

In 1999, PinnacleHealth Heart & Vascular Institute opened performing their first minimally invasive Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm (AAA) repair and being named one of the top 100 U.S. providers of heart care, according to a study by HCIA, a Baltimore-based healthcare information and analysis company. Additionally, the cryosurgery was offered for the first time in Central Pennsylvania on the Pinnaclehealth Community Campus.

On October 25, 2001, the Fredricksen Outpatient Center on the Cumberland Campus was dedicated. The outpatient health and clinical services center and physician office building houses an outpatient surgery center, in addition to clinical and diagnostic testing areas.

In 2002, STAT Medevac Air Transport Service were established at Pinnacle. Then in 2003, the PinnacleHealth Toxicology Center is founded.

In 2004, PinnacleHealth established an emergency medicine residency program, in cooperation with the Penn State Hershey Medical Center, a Level I trauma center located 10 miles east of Harrisburg. Additionally, PinnacleHealth brought the National Red Dress Project to Harrisburg, educating women about heart disease and also performed the placement of the first carotid artery stent in the System.

In 2005, PinnacleHealth began an inpatient geriatric psychiatric program, installed a fully automated laboratory robotics system - both firsts for the region - and began using the SPY® Operating System.

In 2006, PinnacleHealth began to offer robotically assisted minimally invasive surgery (heart bypass and prostatectomy) with the da Vinci® S™ Surgical System and PinnacleHealth nurses receive Magnet designation.

In 2007, PinnacleHealth's Bariatric Surgery Program attained the Center of Excellence designation by the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery.

In 2008, PinnacleHealth achieved recognition as a Thomson Reuters 100 Top Hospitals® for its cardiology program. Additionally, the first same-sitting hybrid revascularization (heart bypass surgery and stent placement) with da Vinci robot was performed. An advanced Minimally Invasive Endovascular Suite was opened. Also, PinnacleHealth began offering antibody reduction protocol to kidney transplant patients to help to reduce preformed human leukocyte antigen (HLA) antibody levels and enhance patient compatibility with available kidneys.

In 2009, PinnacleHealth was recognized as a Primary Stroke Center by The Joint Commission, installed the first Aquilion ONE® (volume computed tomography (CT) scanner), and performed its first kidney transplant as part of the National Kidney Registry’s (NKR) paired donor exchange program. At the time, the transplant was part of the biggest kidney exchange transplant surgery chain in the United States, which involved eight pairings of donors and recipients coast-to-coast. Over a one-week period, September 30 to October 6, 16 surgeries took place at five hospitals across the nation. The exchange had the first red eye flight used for a transcontinental shipped kidney, first compatible pair in a NKR swap and the oldest recipient in an NKR swap at 83 years old.

In 2010, PinnacleHealth’s Harrisburg Hospital is recognized as an Accredited Chest Pain Center by the Society of Chest Pain Centers. Also, PinnacleHealth opened The Spine Institute to provide a multidisciplinary team approach for neck and back pain. PinnacleHealth Imaging began implementing dose reduction software in CT Scanners in order to perform procedures with significantly less radiation.

On April 4, 2011, PinnacleHealth opened the PinnacleHealth-Fox Chase Cancer Center in the new Medical Sciences Pavilion at their Community General Campus. This new collaborative Cancer Center brings a multi-disciplinary approach to cancer treatment among medical oncologists, surgeons, and radiation oncologists and has received recognition for their care. The new PinnacleHealth-Fox Chase Cancer Center is currently providing expert care and treatment to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania and the surrounding areas.

In October 2011, PinnacleHealth opened their new, state-of-the art Donald B. and Dorothy L. Stabler Emergency Department in their Harrisburg Hospital campus. The PinnacleHealth Foundation - the non-profit fundraising division of PinnacleHealth - raised over $12 million for the expansion. Improvements include more new technology for the department, more rooms to assess and treat patients, and overall facility improvements.

Also in 2011, PinnacleHealth opened its renovated antepartum unit, launched its Pulmonary Nodule Clinic, Cardiovascular Institute, as well as the its CyberKnife® Robotic Radiosurgery System.