A Strong Alliance Has Big Benefits For The Community.
The Healthcare Foundation of New Jersey (HFNJ) has a clear mission: “We work to improve the health and wellness of low-income and vulnerable people in the Greater Newark area,” says Marsha Atkind, Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of HFNJ.
“We work with groups that deal with these populations in a compassionate, sensitive, and culturally competent way,” she continues. “Clara Maass Medical Center checks all those boxes.”
Over the past 20 years, HFNJ has had a significant impact on Clara Maass Medical Center (CMMC) and the community it serves, with grants totaling more than $3 million—$580,000 in 2020 alone. Programs funded at CMMC include:
- A Census 2020 initiative to improve response rates in underrepresented populations in the CMMC community
- The Clara Cares and WAVE (Wellness Van for Elders) programs that bring healthcare services to senior citizens at their homes
- CMMC’s Center of Excellence for Latino Health, which focuses on meeting the unmet healthcare needs of the local
Latino community
- HELP (Hospital Elder Life Program), a specialized volunteer program that provides extra attention and care to senior citizens admitted to CMMC
- Renovation of the Healthcare Foundation of New Jersey Learning Center at CMMC
- Specialized equipment for obstetrics, digital mammography, cardiac rehabilitation, women’s incontinence, and treatment of lung cancer
- A new hybrid operating room at CMMC, equipped with advanced medical imaging devices to enable faster, minimally invasive surgeries and give surgeons the flexibility to perform multiple procedures.
“The philosophy behind our giving the hybrid OR grant was the same as that for other grants we’ve given for advanced
technology,” Atkind says. “Everyone deserves to have access to the highest-quality healthcare, and we wanted to support that for the Clara Maass community.”
HFNJ’s most recent grants have provided essential help for needs related to the COVID-19 pandemic. CMMC was responsible for the care of an extraordinary number of complex patients who contracted the coronavirus. HFNJ generously provided $50,000 to support emergency relief efforts, and then gave a $507,050 grant for COVID-19 preparedness. “We want to help ensure that Clara Maass is prepared for any future outbreaks by helping to secure lifesaving equipment for the critically ill and state-of-the-art technologies that will improve safety for patients and staff,” Atkind says.
Note: This photo was taken before the pandemic and social distancing requirements.
Delivering Care
“I’ve always thought of Clara Maass as a really good hospital, and have seen it expand and modernize over the years,” Atkind says. “Beyond that, the personal, warm feeling you find there is very real. It permeates the hospital, and you feel it from everyone who works there. That’s the kind of organization we want to partner with—the kind that delivers quality care, but also deeply cares about the people that they serve.”
“We are very fortunate and thankful to have the support of the Healthcare Foundation of New Jersey,” says Mary Ellen Clyne, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of CMMC. “They have been a crucial part of our commitment to taking care of the diverse community we serve, both inside and outside the walls of the medical center.”
“Giving grants has its challenges because it takes a lot of thought to do it in the most effective way,” Atkind says. “We know, though, that the harder part is actually doing the work—and Clara Maass does the work in a truly excellent way.”
You can learn more about donating to the Emergency Response Fund at Clara Maass Medical Center here.