(CAMDEN and CAPE MAY, NJ) – Cooper University Health Care and Cape Regional Health System announced that the two systems have signed a Letter of Intent to merge. When complete, this historic partnership will bring together two respected health systems to expand access to specialty health services to residents and visitors of Cape May County.

“For more than 135 years, Cooper has continued to expand its reach to provide advanced health care to the people of South Jersey,” said George E. Read more.

A team of physicians from Cooper University Health Care spent a week in Tanzania in November to provide advanced medical education at Muhimbili Hospital in Dar Es Salaam. Muhimbili Hospital is the largest hospital in Tanzania, with 2,000 beds serving a city with a population of more than 4.3 million people. Tanzania, located in Eastern Africa bordering on the Indian Ocean, has more than 60 million people and is one of the most impoverished countries in the world. Read more.

(CAMDEN, NJ) — The American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP^®) has recognized Cooper University Health Care as one of only 78 ACS NSQIP-participating hospitals that have achieved meritorious outcomes for surgical patient care in 2021.

The ACS NSQIP recognition program commends a select group of hospitals for achieving a meritorious composite score in either an “All Cases” category or a category that includes only “High Risk” cases. Read more.

Cooper University Health Care’s credit rating for bonds issued by Camden County Improvement Authority was upgraded by S&P Global Ratings (S&P) to an “A-“ from “BBB+.” Cooper’s new credit rating is the highest it has been in its 135-year history.

“This upgrade speaks to the remarkable turnaround Cooper University Health Care has made from near bankruptcy at the turn of the century to today’s strong financial position,” said George E. Read more.

The Camden Community Partnership, the Office of the Mayor of Camden and The Cooper Foundation have joined forces once again to spread holiday cheer by providing 1,500 Thanksgiving meals to senior citizens across the City of Camden who might otherwise not have enough food to be able to enjoy the holiday. The effort, mostly funded by an anonymous family donor, has become a local tradition. Read more.

Cooper University Health Care has named Kristin Knapp, MD, a third-year general surgical resident and an officer in the U.S. Army Reserves, as the 2022 Cooper Armed Forces Person of the Year.

“Dr. Knapp is an inspiration and an outstanding leader who has made impressive contributions to Cooper, the community, and the nation through her service as a physician and as a military officer and is deserving of this recognition from her team members,” said Kevin O’Dowd, JD, co-CEO of Cooper. Read more.

This month, the Level I Trauma Center at Cooper University Health Care is celebrating its 40^th anniversary of serving South Jersey. From humble beginnings in November 1982, starting as a “demonstration project” to assess the need for dedicated trauma services in the region, Cooper is now one of only three state-designated Level 1 Trauma Centers in the New Jersey and is the busiest in the region, providing life-saving services to nearly 4,000 patients annually. Read more.

Cooper University Health Care’s Gerard Carroll, MD, FAAEM, EMT-P, received the 2022 Nicholas Rosecrans Award for developing and launching the first EMS-administered buprenorphine program in the United States. Dr. Carroll is the medical director of EMS Services and division head of EMS/Disaster Medicine at Cooper University Health Care and Cooper’s Emergency Medical Services.

The prestigious Nicholas Rosecrans Award, presented annually by The California Paramedic Foundation, recognizes EMS organizations nationwide that deliver excellence in injury and illness prevention programming. Read more.

Cooper University Health Care is one of only 28 health systems nationwide to earn the 2022 American Medical Association Joy in Medicine™ Health System Recognition. The AMA distinction is granted only to those organizations that demonstrate a commitment to preserving the well-being of clinical care team members by engaging in proven efforts to combat work-related stress and burnout.

“This recognition highlights Cooper’s belief that supporting our medical providers and other team members is essential to our mission to serve, to heal, to educate,” said Eric Kupersmith, MD, SFHM, senior vice president and chief physician executive at Cooper. Read more.