Jersey Shore University Medical Center Opens MS Center, Welcomes David Duncan, M.D.
August 27, 2019
Dr. Duncan has been providing Multiple Sclerosis (MS) patients with evidence-based, compassionate care for more than 20 years, joins Jersey Shore University Medical Center as director of the new MS Center
Hackensack Meridian Health Jersey Shore University Medical Center recently opened a new Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Center and welcomed MS Certified Specialist David Duncan, M.D., as director of the center. The MS Center’s integrated and multidisciplinary clinical team, part of Hackensack Meridian Health’s Neuroscience Institute, provides patients with comprehensive care to improve symptoms, optimizing their ability to function in their professional and personal lives, reduce pain and improve quality of life.
“We are excited to open this center for our community and have an expert such as Dr. Duncan lead our team of specialists,” said Chief Hospital Executive, Jersey Shore University Medical Center Vito Buccellato, MPA, LNHA. “His experience treating MS and other neurological diseases will prove invaluable in leading our clinicians in combating this complex disease to achieve the best results for our patients.”
MS is an unpredictable, often disabling disease of the central nervous system that disrupts the flow of information in the brain, optic nerves and spinal cord. Nearly one million Americans are currently living with MS according to a study completed by leading experts and supported by the National MS Society as reported in the journal Neurology in February 2019.
“MS and other neurological diseases effect multiple areas of the patient’s health to varying degrees, this can include mobility, vision, reasoning, memory, pain, mood, among others and leads to significant challenges,” said Dr. Duncan. “That’s why I’m particularly proud of this new center’s comprehensive nature, involving multiple experts who can address each area of concern individually for the patient, whether it’s physical, cognitive or emotional in nature.”
The center’s specialists will provide a wide variety of services and treatments, such as physical, occupational, swallowing and speech therapies as well as addressing other problems frequently associated with MS including headaches, sleep disorders, vision problems, bladder and bowel issues, sexual problems, spasticity, pain, psychological well-being, and more.
The MS center will be the cornerstone of a developing neuroscience program within the Neuroscience Institute at Jersey Shore University Medical Center, which will focus on other neurological illnesses such as epilepsy, movement disorders such as Parkinson’s Disease, Alzheimer’s Disease and dementia, headaches and ALS.
“Jersey Shore University Medical Center’s new center joins similar programs at other Hackensack Meridian Health facilities; JFK Medical Center in Edison and Hackensack University Medical Center in Hackensack, giving patients access to these important services across the state,” said Alan Colicchio, M.D., Hackensack Meridian Health medical director, Southern Market, Neuroscience Care Transformation Service.
Dr. Duncan has been providing MS patients with evidence-based, compassionate care for over 20 years. He completed his Neurology training at the University of Kentucky where he was awarded an honorary scholarship to the Max Planck Institute for Neurological Research in Cologne, Germany. He then completed a Functional Neuro-Imaging/Nuclear Medicine fellowship at the University of Pennsylvania.
After beginning his career at the NYU Langone Multiple Sclerosis Comprehensive Care Center in New York, he led the premier CareMount Medical MS specialty practice (formerly Mount Kisco Medical Group) in New York, and was most recently treating patients at Holy Name Medical Center’s MS Center in Teaneck, NJ.
At the MS Center, patients have access to complete diagnostic testing, emerging therapies available through clinical trials and receive assistance with appointments and scheduling, allowing for multiple consultations in one visit. To make an appointment, call 732-897-3620 or for more information, visit https://www.jerseyshoreuniversitymedicalcenter.com/services/multiple-sclerosis-center/.