Geisinger South Wilkes-Barre begins renovation to expand inpatient care

WILKES-BARRE, Pa. - Geisinger South Wilkes-Barre is renovating space on its fourth floor that will add 36 private medical-surgical beds to its inpatient capacity.

Interior construction is in process, and the unit is expected to open by early fall to provide better access to hospital services in Luzerne County and surrounding communities.

As more northeastern Pennsylvanians trust Geisinger with their care, area residents are increasingly seeking care at Geisinger South Wilkes-Barre, which is a campus of Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center. The upgrade follows the September 2025 emergency room expansion at Geisinger South Wilkes-Barre that nearly doubled the department's capacity.

"We continue to see a growing need for acute care services across our region," said Dan Landesberg, associate vice president of clinical operations in Geisinger's northeast region. "We're focused on providing the best possible care for our patients and community, and using Geisinger South Wilkes-Barre to its full potential as a community hospital is necessary to deliver that care."

The hospital began providing satellite service for routine electroencephalograms (EEGs), a non-invasive diagnostic test to detect epilepsy, sleep disorders and brain injuries, in mid-February. EEGs are available from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday as staffing and equipment allow. The offering is designed to prevent unnecessary transfers to Geisinger Wyoming Valley when patients are comfortably recovering at Geisinger South Wilkes-Barre.

At the end of January, Geisinger South Wilkes-Barre opened a discharge lounge, which offers patients who meet certain health criteria a comfortable setting to wait for transportation home, as well as any necessary medications.

As of April, Geisinger South Wilkes-Barre offers dialysis for inpatients, which bolsters the kidney care Geisinger offers in the region and broadens the patient population that can seek care at the hospital.

A Geisinger Pharmacy is expected to open at Geisinger South Wilkes-Barre by the end of the year, which will simplify picking up over-the-counter medications and filling prescriptions for discharged patients and community members who choose it as their retail pharmacy. The pharmacy will also support the hospital's Meds to Beds program, which fills prescriptions and delivers them directly to inpatient hospital rooms to make sure patients are discharged with the right medications at the right time.

"Geisinger South Wilkes-Barre's capability may be greater than many in our community know," said Corey Goldberg, M.D., associate chief medical officer for the hospital. "Our orthopaedic surgeons specialize in robotic-assisted joint replacement surgery. Our campus houses a ConvenientCare+ and pediatric urgent care, and it's a convenient location for lab and imaging services. We continue to add access and capability, and I'm excited to see us grow for this community."

About Geisinger

Geisinger is among the nation's leading providers of value-based care, serving 1.2 million people in urban and rural communities across central and northeastern Pennsylvania. Founded in 1915 by philanthropist Abigail Geisinger, the nonprofit system generates more than $8 billion in annual revenues across 163 care sites - including 10 hospital campuses - and Geisinger Health Plan, with more than half a million members in commercial and government plans. Geisinger College of Health Sciences educates more than 500 medical professionals annually and is conducting more than 1,400 clinical research studies. With more than 27,000 employees, including 1,800 employed physicians and 5,200 registered nurses, Geisinger is among Pennsylvania's largest employers, having an estimated economic impact of $16.8 billion on the state's economy. In 2024, Geisinger joined Risant Health, a nonprofit charitable organization created to expand and accelerate value-based care across the country. Learn more at geisinger.org or follow on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.