HFNJ Grant Expands Team-Based Care for Essex County Seniors at Zufall Health
Zufall Health has expanded care for vulnerable Essex County seniors, courtesy of a generous award from the Healthcare Foundation of New Jersey (HFNJ). The $120,000 grant from HFNJ supports our expansion of team-based medical, dental, behavioral, and supportive services to people 65-plus in and around our West Orange office. Seniors have an increased risk of chronic and communicable diseases, are more susceptible to social isolation, and are more likely to have...
Somerset County and Zufall Health Cut Ribbon on New Medical and Dental Facility in Bridgewater
On Monday, March 13, Zufall Health celebrated the addition of Bridgewater to its roster of service locations in New Jersey. Zufall Health – Bridgewater, a 2700-square-foot facility within the Richard Hall Community Health and Wellness Center, will provide integrated medical and dental services to the clients of Richard Hall and to the surrounding community. Like all other Zufall locations, Bridgewater will serve patients regardless of insurance, income, or immigration status,...
Meet Your Provider: Pablo Fragoso, RPh
Growing up as a Cuban immigrant in New Jersey, accessing health care wasn’t easy for Zufall Health clinical pharmacist Pablo Fragoso, RPh, and his family. His father worked for small businesses that did not offer health care benefits, leaving the family uninsured. A great deal of his father’s income was spent on medical emergencies, including his mother’s time in the hospital. Joining Zufall in 2021 gave Fragoso the opportunity to...
Ask Dr. Bob: Reflect on the Meaning in Your Life for a Happier 2023
Ending the year and beginning a new one is a time to look back on the experiences we’ve had and give some thought to what we’d like our lives to be like in the future. Most people want the year ahead, and their lives in general, to have some meaning or importance. Although you are probably not going to change the world in 2023, now is a good opportunity to...
At Zufall Health, Substance Use Recovery is Part of Primary Care
Providing support for substance use disorders (SUDs), which involve the recurrent use of alcohol and/or drugs despite harmful consequences, is one of the many ways that Zufall Health helps patients achieve better health. Though SUDs can be managed, most people do not get help. Only 1.4 percent of the 41 million people in the U.S with a SUD in 2020 received treatment. Misconceptions about people with SUDs – that they are...
Zufall Health Awarded More than $650,000 to Confront the HIV Epidemic in Essex County
Zufall Health’s HIV Services program is implementing a new, status neutral system of HIV care in Essex County, New Jersey, thanks a grant of more than $650,000 from the New Jersey Department of Health’s Division of HIV, STD, and TB Services. The grant program, Comprehensive Status-Neutral HIV Services for Focus Populations, is part of the state’s efforts to elevate HIV strategy in line with efforts to end the epidemic nationally....
Meet Your Provider: Patricia Kao, M.D.
Pediatricians have a big responsibility to the littlest members of our community: they help patients ages birth to 21 grow into healthy adults. For Zufall Health’s Patricia Kao, M.D., being a pediatrician also means helping young patients overcome barriers to care. As the lead physician at Zufall’s Plainsboro site for the last year and, previously, a physician at our Somerville location for five years, Kao uses a person-centered, trauma-informed approach to...
American Academy of Pediatrics Publishes Advice from Zufall Pediatrician Christine Pagano, M.D., About Keeping Kids Safe from Batteries
Christine Pagano, M.D., a pediatrician in Zufall’s Dover location, was published in October 2022 in the American Academy of Pediatrics’ digital publication HealthyChildren.org. Dr. Pagano’s article, “How can I protect my child from the dangers of lithium coin and button batteries?” addresses the growing problem of kids being admitted to emergency rooms for swallowing batteries, which are harmful to the body. Dr. Pagano writes: “In just 2 hours, lithium coin batteries can...
How Telehealth Transformed Our Delivery of Care
When Zufall Health’s clinical leadership first began discussions about telehealth with the New Jersey Primary Care Association (NJPCA), COVID-19 had yet to enter anyone’s vocabulary. Three years later, Zufall providers, including the Assistant Medical Director and family medicine physician Douglas S. Bishop, M.D., agree that telehealth has been essential for providing accessible and excellent health care delivery during the pandemic and beyond. In addition to mitigating the spread of the virus...
Meet Your Provider: Marcella Perez, M.D.
Zufall Health Family Medicine Physician Marcella Perez, M.D., is a first-generation Colombian American. She says that the similarities between Zufall’s patients and her own family members inspired her to join – and stay with – our health center. Perez has been providing care to children and adults at Zufall’s Morristown and West Orange sites for four years. She takes pride in being able to connect with her patients in their native...