Partnership elevates cancer care and provides more convenient treatment in North Jersey
MONTCLAIR, NJ – October 22, 2019 — The Cancer Center at Hackensack Meridian Mountainside Medical Center has established an affiliate agreement with John Theurer Cancer Center at Hackensack University Medical Center.
“This new relationship is all about helping us live our mission, which is to transform health care in New Jersey and beyond,” said Robert Garrett, CEO of Hackensack Meridian. “We are proud to offer patients the most cutting-edge care, which includes access to advanced clinical trials, close to home and in a convenient location.”
Under this contract, John Theurer Cancer Center will augment Mountainside Medical Center’s full service, multidisciplinary program with oncology specialists. John Theurer Cancer Center will be managing both outpatient and inpatient oncology at Mountainside Medical Center and will ensure the same level of quality patients have come to expect at John Theurer Cancer Center. With this agreement, patients will have access to all clinical trials conducted by John Theurer Cancer Center.
“Since becoming a member of the Hackensack Meridian Network, our goal has been to optimize that affiliation to make clinical enhancements and elevate our caliber of care for complex illnesses such as cancer,” said John Fromhold, FACHE, Chief Executive Officer of Hackensack Meridian Mountainside Medical Center. “This arrangement, together with a recent strategic investment in leading edge radiation oncology technology, is significant for the communities we are privileged to serve because it ensures that the most current, world-class cancer treatment is conveniently available close to home.”
Pictured left to right: Taylor Krueger, assistant administrator Mountainside Medical Center; Stuart Goldberg, M.D.; Donna McNamara, M.D.; Tim O’Brien, COO Mountainside Medical Center; John Fromhold, CEO Mountainside Medical Center; Brett E Lewis, M.D., Ph.D., DABR ®, Rosemarie J. Sorce, vice chair, Hackensack Meridian Hospitals Corporation Board of Trustees, Robert C. Garrett, FACHE, CEO Hackensack Meridian; Andre Goy, M.D., Chair, John Theurer Cancer Center; John Conti, M.D., medical director Oncology Services, Mountainside Medical Center; Andrew Pecora, M.D.; Ihor Sawczuk, M.D., Regional President of the Northern Market, Hackensack Meridian; and Dell Oliver, CNO, Mountainside Medical Center
The extensive scope of activities covered under this agreement includes weekly tumor board case reviews; medical education for physicians and nurses including grand rounds; the development of protocols, policies and procedures; strategic planning; and staff performance assessment and hiring.
John Theurer Cancer Center, the largest and most comprehensive cancer center in New Jersey, is based at Hackensack Meridian Hackensack University Medical Center in Hackensack, New Jersey, one of US News & World Report’s “High Performing Hospitals” for Cancer, 2018-19. John Theurer Cancer Center is a consortium member of the Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, an NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center.
“Our relationship with Mountainside Medical Center was born out of a shared commitment to achieving the best patient outcomes,” said Andre Goy, MD, MS, chair of John Theurer Cancer Center. “Partnerships of this kind are crucial to the advancement of cancer care and research. We’re excited to share the knowledge and expertise we have acquired as a member of trailblazing cancer care consortia with colleagues and patients in suburban Essex and Passaic Counties via this affiliation.”
Special projects to be undertaken during the initial three-year contract term will focus on the development of a pain assessment and care plan; reducing inpatient admissions; clinical trial screening processes; and, hospice and palliative care. John A. Conti, M.D., will continue to serve as the Medical Director and Chief of Oncology, Donna McNamara, M.D., and Stuart Goldberg, M.D. will provide leadership support for this John Theurer Cancer Center affiliation and Brett E Lewis, M.D., Ph.D., DABR ®, will serve as Medical Director of Radiation Oncology.
Mountainside Medical Center’s Cancer Program offers a “whole person” care approach. The hospital is equipped with advanced technology and staffed by experienced, compassionate medical, surgical and radiation oncologists who specialize in the treatment of various forms of cancer. Patients are afforded access to the most current, effective treatment options in a convenient suburban setting.
In addition to establishing a partnership with the state’s largest, most prestigious cancer center, Mountainside Medical Center recently acquired cutting edge Truebeam® technology that benefits patients who require radiation therapy with fewer, shorter treatment visits and less risk of side effects.
ABOUT HACKENSACK MERIDIAN HEALTH MOUNTAINSIDE MEDICAL CENTER
Hackensack Meridian Mountainside Medical Center has been serving Montclair and its surrounding New Jersey communities since 1891. The hospital provides patients access to innovative and effective treatment in specialized centers within the hospital focused on radiology, women’s health, oncology, surgery, bariatrics, neurosciences, stroke, and cardiovascular services. Mountainside is designated as a Primary Stroke Center by The Joint Commission and The NJ State Department of Health and Senior Services and is one of only a few community hospitals licensed by the State to perform emergency cardiac angioplasty and emergency neuroendovascular procedures. To learn more about Hackensack Meridian Mountainside Medical Center visit www.mountainsidehosp.com.
ABOUT HACKENSACK MERIDIAN HEALTH
Hackensack Meridian is a leading not-for-profit health care organization that is the largest, most comprehensive and truly integrated health care network in New Jersey, offering a complete range of medical services, innovative research and life-enhancing care. Hackensack Meridian comprises 17 hospitals from Bergen to Ocean counties, which includes three academic medical centers – Hackensack University Medical Center in Hackensack, Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune, JFK Medical Center in Edison; two children’s hospitals – Joseph M. Sanzari Children’s Hospital in Hackensack, K. Hovnanian Children’s Hospital in Neptune; nine community hospitals – Bayshore Medical Center in Holmdel, Mountainside Medical Center in Montclair, Ocean Medical Center in Brick, Palisades Medical Center in North Bergen, Pascack Valley Medical Center in Westwood, Raritan Bay Medical Center in Old Bridge, Raritan Bay Medical Center in Perth Amboy, Riverview Medical Center in Red Bank, and Southern Ocean Medical Center in Manahawkin; a behavioral health hospital – Carrier Clinic in Belle Mead; and two rehabilitation hospitals – JFK Johnson Rehabilitation Institute in Edison and Shore Rehabilitation Institute in Brick. Additionally, the network has more than 500 patient care locations throughout the state which include ambulatory care centers, surgery centers, home health services, long-term care and assisted living communities, ambulance services, lifesaving air medical transportation, fitness and wellness centers, rehabilitation centers, urgent care centers and physician practice locations. Hackensack Meridian has more than 34,100 team members, and 6,500 physicians and is a distinguished leader in health care philanthropy, committed to the health and well-being of the communities it serves. The network’s notable distinctions include having four hospitals among the top 10 in New Jersey by U.S. News and World Report. Other honors include consistently achieving Magnet® recognition for nursing excellence from the American Nurses Credentialing Center and being named to Becker’s Healthcare’s “150 Top Places to Work in Healthcare/2018” list. The Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine at Seton Hall University, the first private medical school in New Jersey in more than 50 years, welcomed its first class of students in 2018 to its On3 campus in Nutley and Clifton. Additionally, the network partnered with Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center to find more cures for cancer faster while ensuring that patients have access to the highest quality, most individualized cancer care when and where they need it. Hackensack Meridian is a member of AllSpire Health Partners, an interstate consortium of leading health systems, to focus on the sharing of best practices in clinical care and achieving efficiencies.
For additional information, please visit: www.HackensackMeridianHealth.org.