CarePoint Health Achieves Gold Level Recognition In Federal Effort To Increase Organ And Tissue Donor Registration

JERSEY CITY, N.J., Jan. 8, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- CarePoint Health, a fully integrated healthcare system that provides quality, patient-focused healthcare to Hudson County region, was recently awarded U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Gold Level Recognition for its efforts to increase enrollment in the New Jersey state organ donor registry and spread the life-saving message of organ and tissue donation.

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HHS's Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) Workplace Partnership for Life Hospital Campaign mobilizes the nation's hospitals to increase the number of people who are registered organ and tissue donors. CarePoint Health worked with NJ Sharing Network and Donate Life New Jersey to create outreach and registry campaigns to educate staff, patients and the community.

"At CarePoint Health, we know that every one of us has the power to save a life," said Dr. Nizar Kifaieh, Chief Medical Officer at CarePoint Health. "We are proud to work together with NJ Sharing Network, Donate Life New Jersey and our committed staff to encourage more people to register to be organ donors."

CarePoint Health joins the 45 hospitals in the NJ Sharing Network service area recognized by HRSA. Hospitals in the NJ Sharing Network service area received thirty-nine gold, five silver, and one bronze recognition in Phase IV of HRSA's hospital workplace campaign — the highest number of any Organ Procurement Organization (OPO) service area in the country. NJ Sharing Network's designated service area includes 14 counties in northern and central New Jersey.

"CarePoint Health and all our hospital partners are vital to our life-saving mission. With nearly 5,000 people in New Jersey in need of a transplant, the work that our hospital partners do to raise awareness of organ and tissue donation ultimately leads to more patients receiving transplants," said Joe Roth, President and Chief Executive Officer of NJ Sharing Network.

In the coming weeks, NJ Sharing Network executives will present CarePoint Health with a certificate on behalf of HRSA. The campaign unites advocates at hospitals with their local OPOs, Donate Life America affiliates, and state and regional hospital associations. The campaign resulted in 350,000 new donor registrations.

In New Jersey, hospitals working in collaboration with NJ Sharing Network conducted awareness and registry campaigns to educate staff, patients, visitors and community members about the critical need for organ and tissue donors. They created displays at health fairs and blood drives, wrote articles for hospital publications, participated in Blue and Green Day activities as part of National Donate Life Month, and created teams for the NJ Sharing Network Annual 5K Celebration of Life which takes place each June. Phase V of the campaign begins in this month.

"The campaign is not over. The donation advocates in our partnering hospitals know that we are stronger when we work together," said Carolyn Welsh, Director of Organ Donation Services at NJ Sharing Network. "This campaign invigorates all of us to continue working together to spread the life-saving message."

For Media Inquiries, Contact:
Jarrod Bernstein
CarePoint Health
Corporate Communications
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 201-884-5300

About CarePoint Health
CarePoint Health brings quality, patient-focused health care to Hudson County region. Combining the resources of three area hospitals – Bayonne Medical Center, Christ Hospital in Jersey City, and Hoboken University Medical Center – CarePoint Health provides a new approach to deliver health care that puts the patient front and center. We leverage a network of top doctors, nurses and other medical professionals whose expertise and attentiveness work together to provide complete coordination of care, from the doctor's office to the hospital to the home. Patients benefit from the expertise and capabilities of a broad network of leading specialists and specialized technology. At CarePoint Health, all of our medical professionals emphasize preventive medicine and focus on educating patients to make healthy life choices. For more information on our facilities, partners and services, visit our website, www.carepointhealth.org. For information on CarePoint's Neighborhood Health Centers visit our YouTube channel.

SOURCE CarePoint Health