Cooper University Health Care has received a grant of nearly $900,000 over three years through the ALS Association’s Hoffman ALS Clinic Development Award to establish a multidisciplinary Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) Clinic.
The center will expand access to specialized ALS care for patients across southern New Jersey.
There is evidence that people with ALS live longer and better lives under the care of a multidisciplinary clinic. Currently, many South Jersey residents living with ALS must travel long distances to receive coordinated, multidisciplinary care, often to northern New Jersey or out of state. These challenges can delay diagnosis and treatment, particularly for patients with Medicaid coverage or limited transportation options.
The initiative will be led by Dr. Joseph Campellone, a board-certified neurologist and neuromuscular specialist at Cooper and Inspira Neuroscience who has cared for people with ALS and other neuromuscular diseases for three decades. The new clinic will provide comprehensive ALS care with a team of specialists closer to home.
About 7.7 per 100,000 people are afflicted with ALS in the United States, and roughly 30,000 people are living with ALS. There are about 5,000 new diagnoses per year in the U.S. Median survival is two to five years after the onset of symptoms. ALS is most common for those between 55 and 75 years old.
“Our region has long faced a critical gap in access to multidisciplinary ALS care,” said Campellone, who also serves as a professor of neurology at Cooper Medical School of Rowan University. “This clinic will ensure that patients, regardless of insurance status or geographic location, can receive the expert, coordinated care they need within their own community.”
The planned clinic will bring together specialists in neurology, pulmonology, rehabilitation medicine, and supportive care to deliver evidence-based ALS treatment in a single, coordinated setting.
By transitioning from a fragmented care model to a centralized multidisciplinary model, Cooper aims to improve outcomes and enhance the overall care experience for individuals living with ALS. Cooper’s long-term goal is to be the leading ALS care clinic in southern New Jersey and achieve designation as an ALS Association Center of Excellence.