Center Overview

The Valley Hospital is a fully accredited, acute care, not-for-profit hospital serving more than 440,000 people in 32 towns in Bergen County, New Jersey and adjoining communities. Bergen County is the most populous county in the State of New Jersey.

Valley has earned the Gold Seal of Approval from the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations. Its current licensed capacity is 451 beds. In 2006, 47,719 individuals were admitted to Valley, more than 63,619 people were treated in the Emergency Department and 3,189 babies were born. According to the most recent statistics available, Valley is the second busiest hospital in the state of New Jersey, based on admissions.

In addition to the above-mentioned inpatient facility, Valley includes The Robert and Audrey Luckow Pavilion, a new three-story, 128,000-square-foot satellite facility of The Valley Hospital located in Paramus, New Jersey. The Luckow Pavilion is home to The Daniel and Gloria Blumenthal Cancer Center and is also home to the George R. Jaqua Same Day Services Center.

The Valley Hospital is part of Valley Health System that also includes Valley Home Care and Valley Health Medical Group. The Valley Hospital is affiliated with the New York -Presbyterian Healthcare System, and is known throughout northern New Jersey for its medical and technical excellence.

In 2003, 2005, 2006 and 2007 Valley Hospital was recognized for service excellence under the J.D. Power and Associates Distinguished Hospital Program. This distinction acknowledges a strong commitment by The Valley Hospital to provide an outstanding patient experience. Valley was the first hospital in the tri-state area to be awarded this distinction. In addition, Valley also received The Magnet Award for nursing excellence from the American Nurses Credentialing Center. The Magnet Award is the nursing profession's highest honor. Also, The Valley Hospital is the only hospital in New Jersey named to the LeapFrog Group’s list of top hospitals for quality and safety.

Mission Statement

The Valley Hospital serves the community by healing and caring for patients, comforting their families and teaching good health.

The Valley Hospital is distinguished by a commitment to:

• Excellence in clinical care
• Innovation in programs and technology
• Providing a compassionate and respectful environment.

Clinical Research Experience

Designated a Comprehensive Community Hospital Cancer Program by the American College of Surgeons, Valley's Oncology Services at The Daniel and Gloria Blumenthal Cancer Center are guided by a multidisciplinary Cancer Committee that emphasizes "Total Care," defined by Valley as a team approach composed of primary care physicians, surgeons, oncologists, radiation therapists, nurses, social workers and home care services led by highly skilled oncology nurse clinician.

The Blumenthal Cancer Center at The Valley Hospital has extensive experience with the performance of clinical trials. Approximately 20 trials are actively enrolling and another 40 are in follow-up at Valley's Oncology Clinical Trials Department, located in the Luckow Pavilion. Available trials include phase 1, 2 as well as 3. Remarkably, cancer clinical trials at Valley run the range from industry-sponsored drug trials, to cooperative group trials, to investigator-initiated trials. The Oncology Clinical Trials Department is currently running therapeutic trials (standard chemotherapeutics as well as novel biologics and small molecules) as well as registry-type trials involved in data collection. This wide range of clinical trials is unusual for all but the most academic of medical centers. In addition, Valley is the principal site of multi-institutional trials, further exemplifying its role in delivering state-of-the-art cancer care. In short, the ultimate goal of the Clinical Trials Department is to have trials available for all stages of all types of cancers.

Patients undergoing surgery for malignant disease or cardiac surgery at The Valley Hospital have the option of contributing a portion of their tumor or tissue to the hospital’s tissue bank, located in The Center for Cancer Research and Genomic Medicine in The Blumenthal Cancer Center. This tissue bank stores tumor tissue with corresponding normal tissue (if available) as well as peripheral blood, along with each patient’s clinical data (in an anonymous fashion). These tissues and samples are stored for research activities.

In addition to cancer care, Valley treats more patients with cardiac illness from Bergen and Passaic counties than any other hospital in the region. Valley offers a full range of diagnostic and interventional treatment options including open-heart surgery for bypass and valve replacement and repair. Patients coming to Valley for surgical procedures may come from as far north as upstate New York and, in some cases, as far south as Florida. Valley has an extensive clinical trials program. We have approximately 25 trials that we are actively enrolling in, offering both interventional and non-interventional cardiology and cardiac surgery treatments. Valley enrolls patients into drug trials for various disease states such as Atrial Fibrillation, Congestive Heart Failure, Acute Coronary Syndrome, Hypercholesterolemia, Hypertension and Osteoarthritis. The hospital’s cardiac services team includes more than 100 physicians, a highly skilled nursing team (including nurse practitioners and home care cardiac clinicians), clinical trial coordinators, and the services of nurse community educators who assist in inpatient and outpatient education and teaching. The Valley Columbia Heart Center provides comprehensive cardiac surgical procedures for the full spectrum of heart disease. Services include off-pump and traditional coronary artery bypass surgery, valve repair and replacement surgery, and surgical procedures to treat atrial fibrillation.

The Valley Hospital Stroke Center: Diagnosis, Treatment, Rehabilitation, Support, Prevention, Education and Research In 2004, by demonstrating excellence in quality care, The Valley Hospital's Stroke Center became the first such center in New Jersey and the New York metropolitan area to be awarded Disease-Specific Care Certification from the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO). Valley's program was recertified in 2006.

Disease-Specific Certification is awarded only to those hospitals that can demonstrate that they meet rigorous standards of care, and serves as a benchmark that enables the public and emergency medical services personnel to recognize those hospitals that are the best-equipped to treat stroke, according to the Joint Commission.

To provide up-to-date stroke treatments, The Valley Hospital is engaging in promising clinical research aimed at lessening the debilitating effects of stroke. Led by neurologist Kenneth A. Levin, M.D., clinical trials are now under way to test the effectiveness of three neuroprotectives. Valley Hospital is one of only several sites in the country where these medications are being studied. Neuroprotectives reduce trauma to the nerves after a stroke, potentially reducing the severity of any resulting disabilities.

The Valley Hospital has worked with:

The IRB has been in effect since 1974 for research activities at the Valley Hospital.

Facility Description

Valley’s inpatient facility is currently licensed for 451 beds. Valley is also known for its active and longstanding Same-Day Services program. More than one third of Valley’s annual admissions are for Same-Day Services, and more than half of the surgeries performed at Valley are performed on a same-day basis. The George R. Jaqua Same Day Services Center, located in the Luckow Pavilion, provides extensive outpatient services along multiple service lines.

The Valley Hospital is proud to offer the da Vinci Surgical System which gives surgeons the use of robotic technology to perform surgery in many different surgical settings. In addition, radiation therapists at Valley use TomoTherapy, a frontrunner in image-guided Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy. Located in The Blumenthal Cancer Center is a recently completed cancer research laboratory, dedicated entirely to the Center for Cancer Research and Genomic Medicine.

The Valley Hospital has announced that by demonstrating excellence in quality care, the hospital has the first and only cancer program in New Jersey and the New York metropolitan area to be awarded Disease-Specific Care Certification from the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO). This certification serves as the Gold Seal of Approval for health care quality.

Accessibility to public transportation: All of Valley Hospital’s facilities are easily accessed through NJ Transit Bus lines.

Investigator Experience

The following physicians are on the Active Staff of The Valley Hospital and currently participating in clinical trials. For information on doctors in other specialties, please go to www.valleymedicalstaff.com.

Oncology Trial Physicians

Robert J. Korst, MD, Medical Director, Blumenthal Cancer Center, Director of Thoracic Surgery

William Burke, MD, Gynecologic Oncology

Allen Chinitz, MD, Oncology/Internal Medicine

Chad M. De Young, MD, Radiation Oncology

Barry Fernbach, MD, Hematology/Oncology, Internal Medicine

Noah Goldman, MD, Gynecologic Oncology

Alan Israel, MD, Internal Medicine, Hematology/Oncology

Young Kim, MD, Radiation Oncology

Eli Kirshner, MD, Hematology/Oncology, Internal Medicine

Ganepola A. P. Ganepola, MD, Surgical Oncology, General Surgery

Louise Ligresti, MD, Hematology/Oncology, Internal Medicine

Thomas J. Rakowski, MD, Hematology/Oncology, Internal Medicine

Indu Sharma, MD, Hematology/Oncology, Internal Medicine

Robert F. Tassan, MD, Internal Medicine/ Oncology

Michael F. Wesson, MD, Radiation Oncology

Anusak Yiengpruksawan, MD, Surgical Oncology, General Surgery

Cardiology, Surgery & Neuroscience Trial Physicians

Arvind Agarwal, MD, Cardiology

Aysha Arshad, MD, Medicine, Electrophysiology, Cardiology

Joshua Bernheim, MD, Surgery

Mariano Brizzo, MD, Cardiac Surgery

Navin Budhwani, MD, Cardiology

Giovanni Camponile, MD, Cardiology

Daniel Char, MD, Surgery

David Cohen, MD., Surgery

Edward Ewald, MD, Medicine

Howard Goldschmidt, MD, Cardiology

Michael Gross, MD

Cary Hirsch, MD, Cardiology

Steven Jacoby, MD, Medicine

Steven Kernis, MD, Cardiology

Michael Kesselbrenner, MD, Cardiology

William Lee, MD, Cardiology

Evan Leibowitz, MD, Medicine

Kenneth A. Levin, MD

Marc Melamed, MD, Medicine

Suneet Mittal, MD, Medicine/ Cardiology

Bruce P. Mindich, MD, Cardiac Surgery; General Surgery

John Pantazopoulos, MD, Cardiology

Dennis Reison, MD, Cardiology

Mitchell Rubenstein, MD, Medicine

Robert A. Saporito, Jr., MD, Cardiology

Alan Simon, MD, Cardiology

Gerald Sotsky, MD, Cardiology

Jason Sperling, MD, Cardiac Surgery

Jonathan Steinberg, MD, Medicine/ Cardiology

Alex Zapolanski, MD, Cardiac Surgery; Surgery

Tina C. Sichrovsky, MD, Cardiology; Electrophysiology

Janet E. Strain, MD,Internal Medicine, Cardiology; Interventional Cardiology

Gerald Sotsky, MD, Internal Medicine, Critical Care Medicine; Cardiology

John E. Strobeck, MD, Internal Medicine, Cardiology

Marcus L. Williams, MD, Internal Medicine, Cardiology

Joseph Wiedermann, MD

Staff Expertise

Cheryl Parish, RN, BSN, MBA
Manager, Oncology Clinical Trials
10 years experience in Research

Susan Mock, RN, BSN
Clinical Research Coordinator
5 years experience in the Research Field

Eva Brodkin, RN, BSN
Clinical Research Coordinator,
10 years experience in the Research Field

Melissa Cooper, RN, BSN
Clinical Research Coordinator,
20 years experience in the Research Field

Anna Baiata, BA
Research Documentation Specialist,
14 years experience in the Research Field

Nancy Librera, MA
Assistant Vice President, Oncology
14 years in the Research Field

Suzanne Bajakian
IRB Coordinator,
4 years experience in the Research Field

Kathleen Sayles, RN, BSN, CCRP
Manager, Cardiology Clinical Trials
11 years experience in the Research Field

Jacqueline Backhaus, RN, CCRP
Clinical Nurse Research Coordinator
3 years experience in the Research Field

Christine Kunz, RN, BSN
Clinical Nurse Research Coordinator
2 years experience in the Research Field

Kimberly Michel, RN
Clinical Nurse Research Coordinator
4 years experience in the Research Field

Michelle Ramirez, RN, BSN
Clinical Nurse Research Coordinator
1 year experience in the Research Field

Patient Demographics

Our patient population is diverse since the Valley Health System services over 32 towns in Northern Bergen County, NJ and adjoining areas.

Population, 2006 estimate¹

^1.U.S Census Bureau http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/34/34003.html 10/3/07

Other Information

The Valley Hospital maintains its own Institutional Review Board to review studies involving human research participants. The board meets once a month and holds a Federal Wide Assurance with the Department of Health and Human Services. The Valley Hospital also maintains its own Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBC) for clinical trials involving biologic agents as well as a Data Safety Monitoring Board (DSMB).

Additional Locations:
The Valley Hospital
223 N. Van Dien Avenue
Ridgewood, NJ 07450

Contact Information

Robert J. Korst, MD, Medical Director
Daniel & Gloria Blumenthal Cancer Center
The Valley Hospital/Valley Health System
One Valley Health Plaza
Paramus NJ 07652
USA
Phone: 201-634-5792
Fax: 201-634-5383
EMail: webinfo@valleyhealth.com
Web Site: http://www.valleyhealth.com

Currently Enrolling Trials

CenterWatch is listing the following trials that are actively recruiting patients at this center.

• Barrett's Esophagus & Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease
• Chemotherapy With or Without Bevacizumab in Treating Patients With Stage IB, Stage II, or Stage IIIA Non-Small Lung Cancer That Was Removed By Surgery
• Hormone Therapy With or Without Combination Chemotherapy in Treating Women Who Have Undergone Surgery for Node-Negative Breast Cancer (The TAILORx Trial)
• Preoperative Treatment of Patients With High Risk Thymoma
• Study of Sublobar Resection Versus Sublobar Resection Plus Brachytherapy in High-Risk Patients with Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC), 3cm or Smaller

If you are interested in contacting this center to discuss placing a clinical trial there, please complete and send the E-mail form below. A representative from the research center will then follow up with you.