Cooper University Health Care has received a three-year, nearly $900,000 grant to establish a new multidisciplinary Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Clinic. 

The Camden-based health network said the ALS Association’s Hoffman ALS Clinic Development Award “will significantly expand access to specialized ALS care” for patients across South Jersey. 

Commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, ALS affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord, according to the Mayo Clinic. The nervous system disease causes loss of muscle control and gets worse over time. 

Dr. Joseph Campellone will lead the initiative. Campellone is a board-certified neurologist and neuromuscular specialist at Cooper and Inspira Neuroscience with three decades of experience caring for patients with ALS. He also serves as a professor of neurology at Cooper Medical School of Rowan University. 

“Our region has long faced a critical gap in access to multidisciplinary ALS care,” Campellone said in the Aug. 7 announcement. “This clinic will ensure that patients, regardless of insurance status or geographic location, can receive the expert, coordinated care they need within their own community.” 

The planned clinic will bring together specialists in neurology, pulmonology, rehabilitation medicine and supportive care. The center aims to:  

• Reduce time to diagnosis and treatment 
• Streamline appointments to lessen patient burden 
• Improve communication among care teams 
• Expand access to on-site evaluations and advanced therapies 
• Support patients facing financial and transportation barriers 

Cooper aims to achieve designation as an ALS Association Center of Excellence. 

Closer to home

According to Cooper, many South Jersey residents with ALS must travel some distance to receive care. For example, the ALS Association lists certified treatment centers in New Brunswick and Neptune.

Cooper Health also just received a $100 million donation from South Jersey powerbroker George Norcross III. The healthcare provider has several major projects in development, including: 

• A $300M outpatient campus in Gloucester Township 
• The $3 billion Project Imagine, which will expand its Camden campus