LEWISTON – Last-minute preparations were under way Monday for the opening of Central Maine Medical Center’s new, $7.1 million Intensive Care Unit on the fourth floor of the Central Maine Heart and Vascular Institute.

The 19-room unit replaces the 30-year-old ICU/CCU. Almost four times as big, the new unit is not only more spacious, but hospital officials said it will increase physician and clinical staff efficiency, improve patient care and safety, and offer more amenities to patients and their families.

“The configuration of the unit, the near double size of the rooms, the modern technology, ability to monitor patients easier and the healthier staff environment creates the family-friendly, patient-centered intensive care we strive for,” said Dr. Michael Sterling, director of critical care.

Each room has its own state-of-the-art medical equipment, a bed equipped with alarms when specific movement is detected, a private bathroom and a computer station for accessing electronic medical records to chart patient information in the patient’s room.

When medication is ordered, it will be done from the patient’s room specifically for that patient. “That’s a big safety initiative for us, and a big plus,” said Bambi Hathaway, manager of critical care.

The unit is divided into four sections, each with its own nurses station.

A fifth, smaller station is available for when patient census is low.

“We can congregate the patients at the end of the unit and staff them with a single nursing crew,” said Sterling, detailing the benefits of having one continuous unit over the two separate ones in the older ICU.

A new phone system will allow for all nurses to carry small, portable phones so calls can be transferred directly to them without having to leave the patient’s room. “If a nurse has to call a physician for an urgent question while in the room, he or she does not have to leave to use the phone,” Sterling said.

The floor also boasts a large waiting room complete with kitchen area and ample seating, a private consultation room for family discussions with physicians, and accommodations in each room that allow a family member to stay overnight.

“Families are really an extension of our patients, and a lot of times they need to be cared for as well as the patient themselves. We allow them to stay in the room as they choose,” said Hathaway, explaining the unit’s open visitation policy.

As one of only three designated trauma centers in Maine, CMMC sees emergency patients from throughout the area; 40 percent of all patients treated are from outside Lewiston-Auburn.

Hospital officials filed a Certificate of Need application with the state in December 2005 and received approval in June of 2006.

Construction began in February of this year. Hospital officials were expecting to move patients into the new unit today.