Residents of Somerset County will no longer have to travel far to receive world-class cancer treatments, backed by best practices and leading-edge protocols. UPMC Somerset is partnering with UPMC Hillman Cancer Center — one of the largest integrated cancer networks in the nation — to establish oncology services at the hospital. Recognizing that early detection and treatment are top priorities, this partnership is providing world-class care close to home.
UPMC Somerset continues to address opioid addiction and substance use in the community. In partnership with UPMC Western Behavioral Health, UPMC Somerset is enhancing substance-use treatment programs, educational initiatives, and prevention efforts by including outpatient behavioral health services.
On April 25, 2022, UPMC Western Behavioral Health at Twin Lakes broke ground on a $16 million expansion project, which will increase the number of beds by 60 percent and add 26 new jobs.
UPMC Altoona’s Crisis Team is helping to address behavioral health crises where and when they arise throughout Blair County.
The team provides on-site, face-to-face mental health services for individuals and families experiencing a behavioral health crisis, and provides intervention in situations to help prevent them from escalating. The team’s counselors respond to situations that include police calls, deaths, and suicides. They also meet with family members and patients to provide support, resources, and assessments. The UPMC Altoona Mobile Crisis Team is reachable 24/7, 365 days a year, at 814-889-2141.
Supporting Individuals Managing Chronic Conditions
The UPMC Western Maryland Center for Clinical Resources (CCR) provides support for patients managing chronic medical conditions such as diabetes, heart failure, and lung disease, or those taking anticoagulation medication. The center’s goal is to effectively co-manage at-risk patients in an outpatient setting to help improve their health.
Leveraging Technology to Increase Access to Resources
Path2Help is an online tool that makes it easy for people to find appropriate programs and services for food, shelter, health care, work, financial assistance, and more. The tool can be used by anyone in the community, and UPMC Western Maryland is working with local libraries and other partners to make the connection easy.
With the rise of the COVID-19 pandemic, UPMC hospitals have rapidly expanded telemedicine capabilities in outpatient locations to include primary care, urology, and orthopedics services. UPMC hospitals are also using outpatient telemedicine centers to link patients with specialists in Pittsburgh, while on-site staff help perform exams.
The centers offer a new model of care that brings specialty physicians close to home through state-of-the-art video conferencing technology. For example, if a specialist is not available in Bedford County, the center facilitates the connection with the expert, saving patients the trouble of traveling to Pittsburgh.
Every three years, UPMC works with local community partners and public health experts to identify actions and plans to improve community health in what is known as a Community Health Needs Assessment. Thousands of area residents and hundreds of community organizations help to identify the communities’ most pressing health needs.
For more information on UPMC’s impact in its communities, view the Regional Progress Report for west central Pennsylvania and Maryland here.
Your health information, right at your fingertips. Select MyUPMC to access your UPMC health information. For patients of UPMC-affiliated doctors in Central Pa, select UPMC Central Pa Portal. Patients of UPMC Cole should select the UPMC Cole Connect Patient Portal.
The portal for all UPMC patients EXCEPT those in Central Pa.
The portal for UPMC patients in Central Pa.
The portal for UPMC Cole patients receiving inpatient care.
