St. Luke’s University Health Network has been designated as a Care Center within the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation’s (PFF) nationally recognized Care Center Network, expanding access to specialized care for people living with pulmonary fibrosis (PF) and interstitial lung disease (ILD) in the region.
St. Luke’s is one of six PFF Care Centers in Pennsylvania and, the only one in the Lehigh Valley.
The designation is part of a national expansion of the PFF Care Center Network, which now includes 96 centers across 40 states, strengthening access to expert care for patients and families nationwide.
“Having been previously selected as a Clinical Associate, we are very pleased to now be accepted as a Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation Care Center Network (CCN) Care Center,” said St. Luke’s pulmonologist Robert Marron, Associate Director of St. Luke’s Interstitial Lung Disease Program. “This accomplishment reflects the work that has been done to provide patients with comprehensive care for ILD and pulmonary fibrosis here in the Lehigh Valley without needing to travel to Philadelphia or New York. Patients can rest assured they are getting optimal care for this disease process here at St Luke’s.”
“It is a true honor to be selected by the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation as a Center of Excellence,” said Douglas S. Corwin, MD, Medical Director of St. Luke’s Interstitial Lung Disease Program. “This recognition is possible because of the dedication and hard work of the entire St. Luke’s family in providing the highest‑quality, cost‑efficient, and most up‑to‑date care for patients and their loved ones affected by this condition. We look forward to collaborating with other centers and continuing to improve quality of life for all those impacted, both locally and nationally.
St. Luke’s is one of 10 medical centers to receive PFF Care Center Network designation in this round and is the first-ever to transition from the Clinical Associate designation. St. Luke’s has been ranked No. 1 in the United States for quality, safety and patient experience by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
What this designation means for patients
As a PFF Care Center, St. Luke’s meets rigorous criteria developed with input from ILD experts and patient representatives. The center provides coordinated care from a team of specialists with expertise in diagnosing and treating complex fibrotic lung diseases.
Patients cared for at PFF Care Center Network sites benefit from:
- Access to clinicians experienced in pulmonary fibrosis and ILD
- Coordinated care across specialties, including pulmonary medicine and related disciplines
Connection to PFF education, support programs, and community resources
Part of a national effort to transform care
The PFF Care Center Network is a key part of the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation’s efforts to expand access to expert care, accelerate research, and strengthen support for people living with pulmonary fibrosis nationwide. Through collaboration with the PFF, Care Center Network sites also connect patients and families to education, support groups, and community resources.
For more information about pulmonary fibrosis or the PFF Care Center Network, visit pulmonaryfibrosis.org.
About St. Luke’s
Founded in 1872, St. Luke’s University Health Network (SLUHN) is a fully integrated, regional, non-profit network with annual net revenue of more than $4.5 billion. With 23,000+ employees at 16 hospital campuses and 350+ outpatient sites, it is the Lehigh Valley’s biggest employer.
The Network’s service area includes 11 counties in two states: Lehigh, Northampton, Berks, Bucks, Carbon, Montgomery, Monroe, Schuylkill and Luzerne counties in Pennsylvania and Warren and Hunterdon counties in New Jersey. St. Luke’s Children’s Hospital is based at the Bethlehem Campus.
Dedicated to advancing medical education, St. Luke’s is the preeminent teaching hospital in central-eastern Pennsylvania. In partnership with Temple University, the Network established the Lehigh Valley’s first and only four-year medical school. It also operates the nation’s oldest continuously operated School of Nursing, established in 1884, and 60+ fully accredited graduate medical educational programs with 550+ residents and fellows.
In 2025, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services ranked St. Luke’s #1 – ahead of Houston Methodist and Mayo Clinic, two of the nation’s most prestigious institutions – as the nation’s top health system for quality, safety and patient experience. This objective recognition, based on public data reported to the government, reaffirms St. Luke’s preeminent position as THE BEST OF THE BEST among the most respected health care systems in the United States.
St. Luke’s has been named a Leapfrog Group and Healthgrades Top Hospital and a Newsweek World’s Best Hospital. It is the only Lehigh Valley-based health care system to earn Medicare’s five-star ratings (the highest) for quality, efficiency and patient satisfaction. In 2025, the Network earned straight A’s from Leapfrog across all of its acute care hospitals. It has earned 100 Top Hospital designations from Premier 11 years in a row, including in 2021 when its flagship University Hospital was identified as THE #1 TEACHING HOSPITAL IN THE COUNTRY. Utilizing the Epic electronic medical record (EMR) system for both inpatient and outpatient services, the Network is a multi-year recipient of the Most Wired award recognizing the breadth of SLUHN’s information technology applications such as telehealth, online scheduling and online pricing information.
Information provided to TVL by:
Gary Blockus
