Thanks to all of our doctors, nurses and employees who joined us this past Sunday at Six Flags Great Adventure for the annual Cooper Family Picnic!

Cooper Medical School of Rowan University took a major step today with a ceremony to begin clearing the physical site for the new medical school building. Camden Mayor Dana Redd; Cooper University Hospital President and CEO John P. Sheridan, Jr.; Rowan University President Dr. Donald Farish; Rowan University Board Chair Helene Reed; and Founding Dean of the Medical School Paul Katz, MD, put on their hard hats as an excavator with grapple began taking down a vacant building, marking the official start of construction on the site in Camden.

On Thursday, the Asbury Park Press published an article about a medical exercise hosted by The U.S. Air Force Expeditionary Center known as Eagle Flag. During the drill, various local, state and federal agencies — from municipal first-aid squads to the Federal Emergency Management Agency — respond to a scenario in which a category 3 hurricane hits the Garden State.

A recent edition of SNJ Business People published an article featuring John P. Sheridan, Jr., President and CEO at Cooper. Mr. Sheridan spoke of several different business issues including investments in healthcare facilities and consolidation in the regional health care market.

In its fifth year, The Cooper Summer Reading Institute at the Lanning Square School is keeping kids academically connected through a fun and friendly summer reading camp. On Thursday August 5, the program was showcased to the community.

On August 4th at 4:30am, Cooper University Hospital reached a significant milestone in the journey of maturing the Electronic Health Record (Epic) by taking a giant step toward the goal of a paperless record. I’m pleased to report that all Physician Documentation within the hospital is now being done with the EHR, placing Cooper in the forefront of a paperless record not only within the Delaware Valley, but the entire nation.

A panel of renowned medical experts in the field of sports related concussion presented the latest scientific evidence in practical concussion management techniques, at the Athletic Trainers’ Society of New Jersey (ATSNJ) 2010 Sports Concussion Summit in Plainsboro.

A recent hospital inspection report in the Philadelphia Inquirer announced that Cooper’s kitchen/cafeteria is one of the few in the region with no health citations. Congratulations to our Cooper Food and Nutrition Staff!

A Cooper patient, Samuel Sheerba of Willingboro, 73, with major artery blockages, had life-saving heart surgery at Cooper, just in the nick of time. "We're able to look at procedures and customize surgeries for our patients like never before," observes Richard Y. Highbloom, MD, cardiothoracic surgeon at Cooper.

Cooper is continuing the process of going green. Various departments within the hospital are taking strides to become as sustainable and environmentally conscious as possible, and each hospital employee and visitor can help. Fran Cassidy and the Food and Nutrition Department have been environmentally friendly for years: purchasing locally grown produce, fair-trade coffee, cage-free eggs, and providing a menu with the cafeteria is giving discounts for use of reusable coffee cups, and has even begun investigating methods of composting for organic food waste.