Portraits of Pride
Pinar Polat, The Turkish Times National Grassroots Editor pinarpolat@hotmail.com

Erhan Kucuk, M.D. Elected President of the Medical Staff at SJW
Erhan Kucuk, M.D. is the new President of the Medical Staff at St. Joseph’s Wayne Hospital, Wayne, New Jersey (www.sjwh.org). Dr. Kucuk, an internist who also serves as Chairman of the Department of Medicine, succeeds Joseph Tarta, M.D. His term of office begins on January 1. As President, Dr. Kucuk will be responsible for representing the views and needs of the more than 300 physicians who are members of the Medical Staff to the Board of Trustees and President of the hospital. He will also be responsible for reporting to the Board on the performance and maintenance of quality medical care at St. Joseph’s Wayne Hospital.

"I look forward to working closely with Dr. Kucuk in his new position as Medical Staff leader," said Peter Karl, President of St. Joseph’ s Wayne Hospital. Dr. Kucuk has been an active member of the Medical Staff for 12 years and he is respected by his colleagues. He is committed to providing high quality patient care and is a strong advocate for his patients. I will work closely with him to assure that St. Joseph’s Wayne Hospital fulfills its mission as a faith-based institution, offering excellent, compassionate and appropriate health care for our patients, € Mr. Karl added.

Dr. Kucuk was awarded the Doctor of Medicine degree from the University of Istanbul. He completed his internship and residency in internal medicine at Englewood Hospital, where he served as Chief Resident and won the Geigy Resident Achievement Award. Prior to coming to the United States, Dr. Kucuk served for two years as a Lieutenant Physician in the Turkish Army and worked as an emergency room physician at Levent Medical Center in Istanbul.

Board certified in internal medicine, Dr. Kucuk is Clinical Assistant Professor of at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey.

"Facilitating the provision of the highest quality care to all the patients at St. Joseph’s Wayne Hospital and serving as a patient advocate will be my major priorities as Medical Staff President," Dr. Kucuk said. "I also will strive to provide an academically challenging and enriching professional environment for my colleagues on the Medical Staff.

I look forward to working with Peter Karl and his administration to assure that St. Joseph’s Wayne Hospital is one of the best community hospitals in northern New Jersey," Dr. Kucuk added.

Joining Dr. Kucuk as Medical Staff leaders are Bernard Henson, M.D. who will serve as Vice President and Amanullah Vazir, M.D. who will serve as both Secretary and Treasurer. Each officer will serve a two-year term.

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. Clinical services provided at St. Joseph’s Wayne Hospital include the Edward and Stella Van Houten Senior Acute Care Unit, a new 20-bed comprehensive Acute Inpatient Rehabilitation Unit, the John Victor Machuga Diabetes Education Center and a newly renovated and expanded Emergency Department that treats 30,000 patients annually. A state-of-the-art Cardiac Catheterization Laboratory will open in early 2003.