Neurological Care Expands, Neuroscience Treatment Center Opens at Jersey Shore University Medical Center

Hackensack Meridian Jersey Shore University Medical Center celebrated the opening of the Dr. Robert H. Harris Neuroscience Treatment Center January 14. The $2.2 million, nearly 10,000 sq. foot, combined physician office and treatment center is home to experts in several neurological diseases and conditions and is part of Hackensack Meridian Health’s Neuroscience Institute.

Neuroscience outpatient services are now consolidated on the academic medical center’s campus with the opening of the treatment center in Amdur Pavilion and the neurosurgical offices located in the nearby HOPE Tower.

The Dr. Robert H. Harris Neuroscience Treatment Center was named thanks to a generous gift that supported the center, in part, from Golden Dome Foundation, a Middletown, NJ-based 501(c)3 non-profit organization that was founded in 2015 by the late Dr. Robert H. Harris and his wife – the organization’s current president – Mary Ellen Harris, to support charitable causes. Over the span of several years, Golden Dome Foundation has invested heavily at Hackensack Meridian Health medical centers, including Bayshore Medical Center and Ocean University Medical Center in addition to Jersey Shore University Medical Center.

“My husband dedicated his life to advancing research to improve the quality of life for people facing diseases and disorders,” says Mary Ellen Harris. “Making this gift and expanding his legacy through the naming of this new center is simply the carrying on of his life’s work. The community needs access to the best care possible and I am honored and humbled to be able to play a part in ensuring that it can be provided to those in need. I hope that this new center helps a lot of people.”

Patients can visit their physicians and other providers at the center to receive advanced diagnostic testing and treatments in a range of conditions, including; ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) and other neuromuscular disorders; Parkinson’s disease, essential tremor, dystonia and other movement disorders; neuro-oncology including brain and spine tumor treatments; epilepsy and seizure disorders; headaches and migraines and stroke prevention.

“The demand for neurology services in New Jersey is expected to grow by more than 12 percent in the next 10 years, and visits to neurologists, per 1000 population in the Monmouth/ Ocean region, outpace state averages according to healthcare utilization forecasts,” said Alan Colicchio, M.D., chair of Neurology, Jersey Shore University Medical Center and medical director, Neuroscience Care Transformation Service, Hackensack Meridian Health, Southern Market. “With this in mind, over the past two years we have recruited 19 leading neuroscience experts from across the state and country to expand our comprehensive and nationally recognized neurology care services,” Dr. Colicchio added.

“Now with more than 50 neurological specialists, our multidisciplinary teams are working together too to treat complex diseases and optimize functional outcomes so that patients can live full and content lives,” said Shabbar F. Danish, M.D., FAANS, chairman of Neurosurgery, Jersey Shore University Medical Center.

The Dr. Robert H. Harris Neuroscience Treatment Center also serves as an entry point for patients to access the academic medical center’s complete array of neurological services. “We have made significant investments in our neuroscience services to best meet the needs of our community,” said Vito Buccellato, MPA, LNHA, president and chief hospital executive, Jersey Shore University Medical Center. “The new center was specifically designed to unite services to be more convenient and exceedingly accessible for our patients and their loved ones, in one centralized location.”

Services at The Neuroscience Institute at Jersey Shore University Medical Center include:

• ALS Center
• MS Center
• Stroke Center and a neuroscience intensive care unit
• Center for Memory and Healthy Aging, led by a Director of Neuropsychology and geriatric psychiatrist
• Comprehensive Epilepsy Center, for adults and children
• Sleep Medicine Program
• Concussion Program, for adults and children
• Pediatric Neurology Program
• Center for Paralysis and Reconstructive Nerve Surgery
• Center for Advanced Skull Base Surgery
• Craniofacial Center, certified as an American Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Association (ACPA) Approved Team
• Movement Disorder Program
• Headache and Migraine Center
• Neuro-Oncology Program
• General Neurosurgery Program, including spine surgery

The academic medical center provides patients with leading-edge neurological technology, procedures, treatments and expertise unavailable at most New Jersey hospitals. The ALS Center is one of only two ALS Association Certified Treatment Centers of Excellence in the state. The MS Center is one of only two designated as a Center for Comprehensive MS Care by the National MS Society. Patients come to Jersey Shore from across the nation and around the world for groundbreaking surgery to repair damaged phrenic nerves, allowing people with diaphragm paralysis to breathe, or breathe more normally, again. Jersey Shore University Medical Center is the only Joint Commission certified and NJ Department of Health licensed Comprehensive Stroke Center in Monmouth and Ocean counties. State-of-the-art deep brain stimulation (DBS) is used to help patients with movement disorders better control their movement and minimally invasive MRI-guided laser ablation procedures, completed by experts, are provided to precisely remove cancerous brain tumors.

“The new treatment center is a wonderful, patient-focused addition to the Neuroscience Institute,” said Kenneth N. Sable, M.D., MBA, FACEP, regional president, Southern Market, Hackensack Meridian Health. “Jersey Shore, with its expert providers, latest technology and unique care services has become a true hub for advanced neurological care, and an asset for neighboring hospitals and primary care physicians’ patients with complex medical cases necessitating specialized care.”

Jersey Shore University Medical Center has been recognized by Healthgrades as one of America’s 100 Best Hospitals for Stroke Care and with Neuroscience Excellence Awards in 2021 through 2023 as well as with 2022 and 2023 Cranial Neurosurgery Excellence Awards.

For more information about the treatment center or to make an appointment, call (732) 897-3600. For more information about all neuroscience services, visit HackensackMeridianHealth.org/Neurosciences.