provide related clinical supervision of patient care while
exercising independent professional judgment at all times in
the interests of a patient.
"Hospital." An entity located in this Commonwealth that is
licensed as a hospital under this act. The term includes a
critical access and long-term acute care hospital.
"Hospital unit" or "clinical patient care area." An
intensive care or critical care unit, a burn unit, a labor and
delivery room, antepartum and postpartum, a newborn nursery, a
postanesthesia service area, an emergency department, an
operating room, a pediatric unit, a step-down or intermediate
care unit, a specialty care unit, a telemetry unit, a general
medical/surgical care unit, a psychiatric unit, a rehabilitation
unit or a skilled nursing facility unit.
"Long-term acute care hospital." A hospital or health care
facility that specializes in providing acute care to medically
complex patients with an anticipated length of stay of more than
25 days. The term includes a free-standing and a hospital-
within-hospital model of a long-term acute care facility.
"Medical/surgical unit." A unit that:
(1) Is established to safeguard and protect patients
whose severity of illness, including all comorbidities,
restorative measures and level of nursing intensity requires
continuous care through direct observation by a direct care
registered nurse, monitoring, multiple assessments,
specialized interventions, evaluations and the education or
teaching of a patient's family or other representatives by a
competent and experienced direct care registered nurse.
(2) May include patients requiring less than intensive
care or step-down care and patients receiving 24-hour
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