Together in Health: HFNJ’s December 2025 E-newsletter
December 3, 2025In this Issue:
- Letter from the Board Chair and CEO (below)
- Fourth Quarter Grant Awards
- Interview: Stephanie Schwartz
- Behavioral Health Convening
- Evaluation Training
- Grants in Action: University Hospital
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Hospitals At the Core of Our Health
Newark-area hospitals are the crown jewels in the region’s healthcare system. Patients from across the state – and in some cases, from around the world – come for care at University Hospital’s Level I Trauma Center, Newark Beth Israel Medical Center’s historic Cardiovascular and Thoracic transplant centers, or the newly-constructed Melchiorre Cancer Center at Cooperman Barnabas Medical Center.
Hospitals provide much more than complex surgeries and emergency care. They have become anchor institutions for the delivery of healthcare in their neighborhoods. Hospitals work in partnership with many other nonprofit organizations in their communities to provide comprehensive healthcare services and also address the local social determinants of health.
That is why, since The Healthcare Foundation of NJ’s creation from the sale of Newark Beth Israel Medical Center (NBIMC) to the St. Barnabas Health System in 1996, our Foundation has always invested in strengthening our area’s hospitals. Our board understands that grants made to hospitals – from purchasing equipment to renovating patient care areas to launching innovative new programs – are long-term investments touching thousands of lives. In many cases, these investments continue to have an impact decades after the grant award.
As we reach the end of 2025, we are also reaching the completion of a historic, $5 million grant to NBIMC to help fund the renovation of its The Healthcare Foundation of New Jersey Emergency Services Pavilion. The grant was the largest ever awarded by HFNJ and represents our deep and unique relationship with “The Beth.”. This now-completed renovation has revitalized the patient experience for the tens of thousands of patients each year who utilize the ED for emergency care. The renovated space embodies a humanistic approach to medical care, a core value of the Foundation.
We also close the year by making two new awards to help Newark hospitals expand their ability to deliver world-class care. NBIMC will receive a $578,100 grant to help it achieve designation as a Comprehensive Stroke Center by early 2028. University Hospital will receive $621,132 to support a major renovation of clinical care spaces for the Hospital’s Liver Center.
At the same time, work continues on ongoing hospital-based projects funded by HFNJ. 2025 marks the second year of a three-year, $1,000,000 grant to Overlook Medical Center to fund the creation of the HFNJ Child and Adolescent Behavioral Health Center. It also marks the second year of our $1,250,000 grant to Trinitas Medical Center to fund the creation of a new state-of-the-art cardiac catheterization laboratory. In 2022, HFNJ provided a $500,000 grant to Morristown Medical Center to support the creation of the Pediatric Behavioral Health patient care space in its renovated and expanded Goryeb Children’s Hospital Emergency Department.
These long-term investments reflect our unwavering commitment to ensuring that Newark-area residents have access to the best healthcare where they need it most – close to home. As we look ahead to 2026, and enter our 30th year anniversary, we remain dedicated to strengthening the hospitals that serve as the backbone of health and hope in our communities.
In good health,
Amy Schechner, Board Chair
Michael Schmidt, CEO/Executive Director