When Ken Woodbury suffered a massive attack that stopped his heart while visiting a local antique show, St. Joseph’s Regional Medical Center (SJRMC) moved rapidly to save his life. 

Paramedics started therapeutic cooling in the field that continued in the hospital setting -- a combined procedure used for the first time in New Jersey by St. Joseph’s Regional Medical Center. This process saved Woodbury’s heart muscle and protected his brain.

Therapeutic hypothermia is a body-cooling protocol to stabilize cardiac arrest patients whose hearts have stopped and have been restarted.

"We are setting a trend in critical care," explains Mark Rosenberg, DO, chairman, Emergency Medicine, SJRMC.  "Being able to provide our patients, especially our time-sensitive cardiac patients, with innovative and successful protocols in life-saving care, is our mission.  This makes St. Joseph's Regional Medical Center, a state designated trauma center, a true leader in emergency care. Having our Mobile Intensive Care Unit (MICU) team initiate therapeutic cooling as cardiac arrest survivors are transported to St. Joseph's is a complement to the overall continuum of care provided to our patients at the medical center. Our program at SJRMC currently has a 50 percent success rate, which is a phenomenal number compared to other programs across the country. The current national average is 33 percent set by a hospital on the West Coast."

To learn more, view a video testimonial provided by Ken Woodbury at StJosephsHealth.org.