JOHN P. FERGUSON ELECTED TO BOARD OF TRUSTEES FOR MARTHA'S VINEYARD HOSPITAL

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John P. Ferguson and West Tisbury on Martha's Vineyard,president and chief executive officer of Hackensack University MedicalCenter, was recently elected to the Board of Trustees of Martha's VineyardHospital, Inc.

John P. Ferguson , president and chief executive officer of Hackensack University Medical Center, was recently elected to the Board of Trustees of Martha's Vineyard Hospital. He will serve as one of 15 board members at the hospital.

"I am honored to be elected to the Board of Trustees of such a fine institution," said Mr. Ferguson. "I look forward to serving with them in the coming years." Martha's Vineyard Hospital offers a comprehensive array of inpatient services including medical and short-term psychiatric. In addition, they have a 24-hour, seven-day, emergency department that is staffed with board-certified physicians and registered nurses. Outpatient services include same-day surgery, chronic renal dialysis, diagnostic radiology, and many others.

Mr. Ferguson has been with Hackensack University Medical Center since 1981 and has been its president and chief executive officer since 1986. During his tenure the then Hackensack Medical Center grew into a major university-affiliated medical center. It is designated as a Level II Trauma Center, providing tertiary and regional services for Northern New Jersey and the tri-state area. With more than 1.6 million ambulatory care visits in 1999, the medical center is the largest provider of such services in the New York/ New Jersey metropolitan area. The medical center is also the largest provider of inpatient and outpatient services in New Jersey while maintaining one of the lowest lengths of stay. In fact, according to a recently published article in the "Orlando Sentinel," the medical center was ranked as the seventh largest healthcare facility in the nation by the number of inpatient admissions.

The medical center continues to evolve responding to the healthcare needs of its patients. Earlier this year the medical center received state-designation as a New Jersey Children's Hospital. The medical center also recently opened The David Joseph Jurist Research Center for Tomorrows Children, which houses the medical center's Institute for Biomedical Research and consolidates all of the medical center's ongoing research activities in one location. The medical center is also home to Hackensack University Medical Center Plaza, the largest adult ambulatory care facility in the Northeast. "Beyond," a medical day spa that bridges the gap between traditional spa services and medicine recently opened on the ninth floor of the medical plaza.

Mr. Ferguson is a graduate of St. Peter's College and received an MBA in healthcare administration from George Washington University. He serves on several boards and has been awarded many accolades. Just this year he was selected by the Board of Trustees of the Academy of Medicine of New Jersey as the Medical Executive of the Year.