May 15, 2018 East Orange Mayor Ted Green Recognizes Historic Nurse and New Jersey Hall of Fame Inductee Clara Louise Maass during National Nurses Week

In recognition and appreciation of nurses everywhere, during National Nurses Week, the Honorable Ted Green, Mayor of East Orange, New Jersey presented a proclamation on May 9th in recognition of historic nurse Clara Louise Maass (1876-1901), a native of East Orange, who was inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame Class of 2017. Maass was officially inducted on Sunday, May 6th. Mary Ellen Clyne, PhD, President and Chief Executive Officer of the hospital that bears the name of Clara Maass Medical Center in Belleville accepted the official proclamation. Clyne was joined at the ceremony by Bonnie Geissler, MHA, RN, Chief Nursing Officer and Vice President for Patient Care Services at Clara Maass Medical Center.

“I am very proud to honor Clara Louise Maass, a native daughter of East Orange, who lived just steps away from East Orange City Hall, but who sacrificed her life so that others could be saved from the yellow fever epidemic that was infecting U.S. soldiers and spreading throughout Cuba at that time,” said Mayor Green.

“It is a sincere honor to have Clara Louise Maass recognized by her hometown” said Mary Ellen Clyne, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of Clara Maass Medical Center. “During National Nurses Week, the recognition from the Mayor and the City of East Orange feels even more special” said Clyne, who is also a registered nurse.

Maass served overseas as a nurse for the U.S. Army – even contracting dengue fever herself – Clara Maass answered the call for volunteers in Havana, where dozens were dying of yellow fever daily. While there, Maass was the only woman to participate in an experiment to determine the root of the yellow fever epidemic. It was her sacrifice that proved the Aedes Aegypti mosquito to be the cause, put an end to those experiments and led to life-saving treatment.

At the end of the ceremony, which took place in the Rotunda at East Orange City Hall, Mayor Green, Dr. Clyne and Ms. Geissler walked a short distance to a nearby marker mounted upon a stone that was dedicated in memory of Maass in 1964 by the Centennial Tree Committee.

According to the American Nurses Association (ANA), National Nurses Week begins each year on May 6 and ends on May 12, Florence Nightingale's birthday. Through its theme this year ‘Nurses Inspire, Innovate and Influence’, ANA supports and encourages National Nurses Week recognition programs through state and district nurse associations, other specialty nursing organizations, educational facilities, and independent health care companies and institutions, including hospitals.

Mayor Green

(l-r): LaDonna Johns, JD, OTR, Director, East Orange Department of Health and Human Services; Honorable Ted Green, Mayor, City of East Orange; Bonnie Geissler, MHA, RN, Chief Nursing Officer and Vice President for Patient Care Services, Clara Maass Medical Center and Mary Ellen Clyne, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer, Clara Maass Medical Center.

 

About Clara Maass Medical Center
Located in Belleville, NJ, Clara Maass Medical Center, an RWJBarnabas Health facility, provides a complete continuum of care to residents of northern New Jersey. Clara Maass recently completed state-of-the-art campus expansion project featuring a new four-story 87,000 square foot building with a private, 32-bed Intensive Care Unit, new Main Entrance and Lobby, Retail Pharmacy, Patient Registration Area and designated new space to accommodate our future Emergency Department expansion. Clara Maass’ services include: The Cancer Center, Center for Breast Health and Disease Management, Radiation Oncology, Infusion Therapy, Cardiac Services Elective and Emergency Angioplasty and Cardiac Rehabilitation, The Pain Management Center, The Joint & Spine Institute, a Vascular Lab, The Vein Center, The Wound Center, The Center for Sleep Disorders, The Bariatric Surgery Center, Rehabilitation; Therapy Services which includes, physical therapy, occupational therapy and speech therapy, The Eye Surgery Center, Maternity Services and Parent Education, Pediatrics, Center of Excellence for Latino Health, and the Health and Wellness Center. Clara Maass has been recognized nine Grade ‘A’ scores for patient safety and quality by The Leapfrog Group. It is listed by the American Hospital Association as one of Healthcare’s Most Wired hospitals. In 2016-17 Clara Maass has received the Healthgrades Obstetrics and Gynecology Excellence Award and the Labor and Delivery Excellence Award. Clara Maass received Disease Specific Care Certification from the Joint Commission for Acute Coronary Syndrome (ACS), Congestive Heart Failure, Hip Replacement, Knee Replacement, Cardiac Rehabilitation and Advanced Certification in Palliative Care. Clara Maass earned Clara Maass’ steadfast commitment to improve the health and well-being of the communities it serves is exemplified through award winning programs including the nationally recognized HELP Volunteer program, recipient of the American Hospital Association 2017 HAVE Award, and the Wellness Assessment Van for Elders (WAVE) which was recognized as the New Jersey Hospital Association’s 2017 HRET Community Outreach Award. For a physician referral or more information about Clara Maass, call 1-888-724-7123 or visit www.rwjbh.org/claramaass.

Contact: Stacie J. Newton, Clara Maass Medical Center
Office: (973) 450-2989
Mobile: (201) 424-9678
E-mail: Stacie.Newton@rwjbh.org

Connie Jackson, Township of East Orange
Office: 973-687-9345
E-mail: Connie.Jackson@eastorange-nj.gov