224 Hamburg Turnpike

Wayne, New Jersey 07470

973-942-6900

Last update:

02/14/2005

Mission Statement

In the spirit of Toward Boundless Charity, the Mission of St. Joseph’s Healthcare System, Inc., a ministry of healing in the Catholic Church and sponsored by the Sisters of Charity of Saint Elizabeth, is to render quality healthcare in northern New Jersey with a special concern for the poor and the underserved.

Vision Statement

St. Joseph’s Healthcare System will be recognized as a leading healthcare provider of choice in New Jersey.  It will be characterized by the excellence of its health care services, its focus on compassionate care of its patients, and by a culture of continuous quality improvement.

Value Statement

The core values express our convictions and beliefs.  We strive to integrate these values into all that we do.

Dignity

We respect each person at every stage of development as created by God.

Justice

We advocate for the needs of the most vulnerable. We operate at all levels in an ethical manner, with fairness, honesty, and confidentiality.
 

Excellence
We enable the highest performance through ongoing growth and development with a commitment to quality, openness to new ideas, accountability to standards, and working together to achieve goals.
 

Stewardship    

We use our resources, both human and financial, in a responsible manner with a special commitment for the care of the poor.          
 

To accomplish this St. Joseph’s will:

• Demonstrate quality of service through the use of cutting edge technology, clinical programs which reflect collaboration and a continuum of care throughout the System, and the excellence and expansion of its comprehensive healthcare education, including residency and research programs.

• Provide and advocate for the care of the underserved and indigent.

• Promote regional and faith-based networks and partnerships for the promotion of innovative health care delivery.

• Steward resources through continuous strategic planning and the strengthening of its financial base.

St. Joseph’s Wayne Hospital:

St. Joseph’s Wayne Hospital, a member of the St. Joseph’s Healthcare System, is a 229-bed acute-care community hospital that provides comprehensive medical and surgical care, emergency and diagnostic services to the residents of Wayne and communities in northern New Jersey. A Catholic hospital, St. Joseph’s Wayne Hospital is sponsored by the Sisters of Charity of Saint Elizabeth. We administer the highest quality care through effective partnerships with physicians, religious leaders of all faiths and community leaders.

St. Joseph's Wayne Hospital is licensed by the New Jersey State Department of Health and Senior Services and is accredited by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations.

Our History

St. Joseph’s Wayne Hospital originated in the “Fifield House on the Hill,” in Paterson, on April 10, 1871. The idea of a general hospital, nonsectarian in character, was first conceived by the Paterson Ministers’ Association.  However, it took a group of 23 civic-minded women, members of the Paterson Benevolent Society, to cause the idea to materialize. 

With four blankets, five dollars and the use of the “Fifield House,” the women opened the 12-bed facility.  They called it  “The Hospital of the Ladies Association of Paterson,” a name which it retained until 1887, when it was changed to “The Paterson General Hospital.”

By 1892, continued success allowed for the construction of a new building on the corner of Market Street and Madison Avenues.  Some noteworthy additions include the Sarah Amelia Quakenbush Memorial Home for Nurses in 1910, Bell Memorial Pathological Laboratory in 1913, a private wing comprising an outpatient department, five floors for private and semi-private patients and an operating room suite in 1926, and in 1932 the establishment of the Josephine Lendrim Memorial Clinic.

By the 1960’s the hospital complex had eleven separate buildings and more than 450 beds.  With more than 50 percent of its patients coming from outside the city, Paterson General developed into a regional hospital without the required space or coordination of facilities.  The 5.9 acres site at Madison and Market could no longer accommodate needed expansion.  

Following an examination of possible alternatives, a site for construction of a new facility was purchased in Wayne in 1966. Construction began in the fall of 1972.  On May 15, 1973 the new 215-bed hospital building opened for business.  The first patient was admitted on June 6, 1973.  In 1983, the name of the hospital was officially changed to “Wayne General Hospital.”

On March 1, 2001, membership of Wayne General Hospital was transferred to the St. Joseph’s Health Care System. The hospital was renamed “St. Joseph’s Wayne Hospital” and began a new chapter in its history as a Catholic institution under the sponsorship of the Sisters of Charity of Saint Elizabeth, whose mission and philosophy guide all its activities.