Underwood-Memorial Hospital joins Jefferson Neuroscience Network as New Jersey participant

Dec 1 2010

Underwood-Memorial Hospital of Woodbury, New Jersey has joined the Jefferson Neuroscience Network (JNN) as one of the first New Jersey participants. Through this collaboration, Jefferson and Underwood will provide some of the most sophisticated care and expertise available to patients with time-sensitive neurovascular diseases. By joining the JNN, Underwood patients will have access to the resources of a comprehensive stroke center, including: the latest clinical protocols and trials available; community education programs; priority transfers for acutely ill patients; and real-time access to the expertise of experienced neurologists and neurosurgeons in the immediate treatment of patients with neurovascular disease.

'Time is Brain'
'Time is brain' is the credo among healthcare professionals for diagnosing and treating time-sensitive neurovascular diseases, including arteriovenous malformations (AVMs), brain aneurysms and, especially, stroke. Certain drugs for stroke must be administered within 4.5 hours for best chance of functional recovery. Timely performance of neurological procedures to repair AVMs and aneurysms are similarly urgent.

"Stroke is the third-leading cause of death in the United States but the leading cause of disability. On average, someone suffers a stroke every 45 seconds; someone dies of a stroke every three minutes; and 795,000 people suffer a new or recurrent stroke each year," said Rodney Bell, M.D., neurologist and co-director of the Jefferson Stroke Center.

All Available Resources
"JNN was established to place all of our resources, among them, vascular neurologists, dual-trained neurosurgeons, advanced technology, leading clinical trials in which we partner with the National Institutes of Health, and community education on neuroscience issues, at the disposal of patients, their families and physicians of hospitals participating in the network.," said Robert H. Rosenwasser, M.D., Jewell L. Osterholm, M.D., Professor and Chair, Department of Neurological Surgery at Jefferson Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University, and co-director of the Stroke Program at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital. By joining JNN, hospitals, regardless of location, can access the resources of a comprehensive stroke center, and tap into the expertise of experienced neurologists and neurosurgeons in the immediate treatment of patients with neurovascular disease in cases where every minute can make a critical difference.

SOURCE Underwood-Memorial Hospital