(Courtesy of St. Mary’s General Hospital) Passaic has one of the oldest hospitals in New Jersey with a very interesting history, and it is adding a new dimension to this storied past, or completing a full circle, depending on who you ask..

At the turn of the last century there were three hospitals in Passaic––Passaic General Hospital, which specialized in cardiology and was renowned for its Eastern Heart Institute and for pioneering the first open heart surgery in the state; Passaic Beth Israel Hospital, which led in cancer treatments and has a respected oncology center; last is St. Mary’s General Hospital, which was lauded for its maternal-child and behavioral health programs. Through a series of mergers and buyouts, only one hospital remains––St. Mary’s General Hospital, part of the Prime Healthcare network. It is one hospital that provides all the services of the original three.

Today, St. Mary’s General Hospital is working diligently to service the medical needs of the Passaic-Clifton Orthodox Jewish community, complete with an advisory board consisting of doctors, rabbanim and prominent people in the frum community to oversee the progress and advise where needed.

“We decided earlier this year that we needed to reach out to the Orthodox Community,” said Ed Condit, CEO of St. Mary’s. “Two of our BOD members suggested engaging George Matyjewicz, who is the central communications link for the community, and who has been an executive in hospitals in the area. We did and since then we have been working non-stop to accommodate the community.”

“In addition to the major improvements made by Prime, that nobody knows about, the Healthgrades Awards the hospital has received over the years is quite an accomplishment,” said Matyjewicz. “Our community needs to be comfortable that St. Mary’s can service our medical needs and that we need not go elsewhere.”

The process started with an evaluation of St. Mary’s operations, services offered, staff, physicians, facilities and accoutrements with the intent of determining what will work and what changes may be necessary to accommodate the frum community. The evaluation considered the religious requirements and/or restrictions of the community and what may need to change.

“It was important to ascertain that everybody was on-board with this initiative,” said Matyjewicz. “Since one section that may be out of sync with the overall program could cause further communication issues. It was important to know if the hospital was ‘open for business’ i.e., how easy is it to reach departments or people from the outside?”

After the evaluation a plan was implemented to address the findings and determine what is needed to attract the frum community, i.e., what existing services will work in this community, what other services may be needed, how will the staff adapt to this new market, what training, marketing and programs are needed, and a timeline to implement.

“And, of course, our advisory board will play a big role helping us define and tailor the services we offer,” said Matyjewicz.

Now, the hospital is implementing the plan that includes educating management and staff on working with the frum community and making physical changes to the facility––Shabbat path and elevator, bikur cholim Shabbat room, kosher food from a local deli, addressing patients admitted to the hospital on Shabbat or Yom Tovim, hatzolah and the E.R., patient requirements during a stay, contact information and liaison in the community and much more.

“I was pleasantly surprised to see the enthusiasm of management and Staff in undertaking this challenge,” said Matyjewicz. “As I explained to them, while we have unique requirements, it’s not much different than other cultures who also have restrictions, and Northern New Jersey is a melting pot for different cultures. As we were educating staff, where possible we all related how our needs were similar to Muslims, Indians or strict Catholics, since some of the staff were of those cultures (including me before I converted to Judaism).”

In addition, the hospital has developed and will continue to add a series of education programs specific for the community to address the 38 genetic diseases common in frum Jews including BRCA 1 & 2 genes (breast, prostate and colon cancer), Gaucher family of diseases, lactose intolerance, Crohn’s, musculoskeletal disorders, anaphylactic food allergies, asthma, ADHD and more. And, of course, since the Orthodox community is noted for large families, special programs centered on labor and delivery, breast feeding, high-risk pregnancies, fertility issues and more.

For more information email George Matyjewicz at [email protected].