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St. Joseph’s Health is launching an outpatient treatment center dedicated to the care of patients with chronic or non-healing wounds.

The Center for Wound Healing and Hyperbarics seeks to aid the healing process using a comprehensive care approach that combines traditional and advanced therapies. The new office is located at the Paterson-based system’s medical center in Wayne.

More than 6.5 million Americans suffer from chronic non-healing wounds, according to the American College of Surgeons. Chronic wounds often arise from underlying medical issues, such as diabetes, poor circulation, pressure ulcers or weakened immune systems. Those conditions can wind up disrupting the normal healing process, too.

In Wayne, the facility’s multidisciplinary team includes general, vascular and plastic surgeons; podiatrists; infectious disease physicians; certified nurses; and technicians with training in wound care and hyperbaric oxygen therapy.

Dr. Scott Wessner is medical director of the Center for Wound Healing and Hyperbarics. “Since non-healing wounds rarely result from a single cause, we treat the whole person, not just the wound,” he said. “Our physicians work closely to develop an effective, individualized treatment plan that focuses not only on the wound, but also on managing any underlying conditions in order to accelerate total healing.”

How it works

St. Joseph’s Health Center for Wound Healing and Hyperbarics is one of a few locations in the region that provides access to this cutting-edge treatment for wound healing. The site offers two hyperbaric oxygen chambers.

Hyperbaric therapy (HBO2) works by increasing oxygen levels in damaged tissues. That then stimulates growth of new blood vessels and enhancing immune cell function — all factors that contribute to wound healing.

Michael Cairoli, vice president and chief operating officer of St. Joseph’s Wayne Medical Center, shared, “We are thrilled to offer the latest healing technology to patients with wounds that may not have responded to other treatments. Our goal is to aggressively treat wounds to optimize outcomes and restore quality of life for our patients.”