Mount Nittany Health hosted a brief ribbon cutting ceremony on February 27, 2023, to mark the opening of its newly renovated laboratory at Mount Nittany Medical Center. Staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week, the 90 lab employees process approximately 2,000 test tubes per day and conduct 2.5 million tests per year.

“As anyone who has ever waited for test results knows,” said Kathleen Rhine, President and CEO of Mount Nittany Health. “Timeliness, accuracy, and reliability are essential, and this requires state-of-the-art equipment and adequate space to accommodate the necessary staffing. “The new lab is an investment in our patients and the community we serve.”

State-of-the-art technology is at the centerpiece of the new lab that includes automation equipment, including a new Beckman Coulter DxA 5000 Total Lab Automation System, that will greatly increase the efficiency and speed at which the lab can process samples.

The $9 million project included strategic design and layout that streamlined workflow in the lab to allow for greater efficiencies that benefit both patients and staff.

According to Kristin Klinefelter, Manager of Laboratory Services at Mount Nittany Health, “We were very thoughtful as to how to create an efficient space. The new lab features an open floor plan with uninterrupted sight lines and lots of natural light. We eliminated overhead cabinetry which gives the lab a large, open feel while occupying the same square footage as the old lab.”

In addition to the new lab, Mount Nittany Health recently celebrated an expansion of Women’s & Children’s Services at Mount Nittany Medical Center, the groundbreaking of the new Outpatient Center in Toftrees West, which is scheduled to open in Spring 2024, and announced the construction of a new Patient Tower at Mount Nittany Medical Center, tentatively scheduled to be completed in 2026.