Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital

The Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital was founded as the New Brunswick City Hospital in 1884,[3] but it changed its name to the John Wells Memorial Hospital in 1889 when community leader and volunteer Grace Tileston Wells donated a building at the corner of Somerset and Division streets in honor of her late husband, John Wells. That first small building was expanded in 1916 to accommodate the growing area and renamed Middlesex General Hospital.[3] In 1958, an addition to the hospital was built that housed the first vascular lab in New Jersey, an intensive care unit, cardiopulmonary lab, a thirteen-room operating suite, and increased the number of beds by 287.[4] At this time, the Department of Clinical Research was established, X-ray technologist training began, and the hospital auxiliary was founded.[5] In 1986, the hospital was renamed Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital after Robert Wood Johnson II, the former president and chairman of the board of Johnson & Johnson.[6]

In 2014, Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital and Somerset Medical Center officially completed their merger.[7]

In 2015, Barnabas Health and Robert Wood Johnson Health System signed an agreement which outlines the merger between these two health systems.[8] Once complete, the transaction would create New Jersey's largest health care system and one of the largest in the nation. The New Jersey Attorney General must review the deal before it is official, with the expectation that the merger would be completed in 2016.[9] On March 30, 2016, the two health systems officially merged and formed RWJBarnabas.[10]

Additionally in 2015, the hospital opened The Laurie Proton Therapy Center.[11] Made possible thanks to a lead gift from the Blanche and Irving Laurie Foundation as well as support from individual donors, it is currently home to the world’s third MEVION S250 Proton Therapy System. The center treats prostate, breast, lung, head and neck, brain, pediatric, pancreatic, and other cancers with what is currently considered to be the most precise form of cancer treatment. Instead of using conventional radiation therapy to destroy cancer cells, proton therapy uses a beam of protons that can be aimed directly at tumors. There is less damage to surrounding tissue, and doctors can use a higher dose of radiation than conventional therapy. The treatment is painless, has mild side effects, and has minimal risk. Proton therapy is part of a comprehensive range of advanced cancer treatment options offered by RWJ in partnership with Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey (CINJ), Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and private physicians in the community.[12][13]

RWJUH New Brunswick has been ranked among the best hospitals in America by U.S. News & World Report seven times and has been selected by the publication as a high-performing hospital in several specialties. The hospital is also listed as the best hospital in the Central New Jersey area[34] The Bristol-Myers Squibb Children's Hospital has also ranked among the nation's Best Children's Hospitals by U.S. News & World Report for three consecutive years.[35] The American College of Surgeons' Commission on Cancer has rated RWJUH among the nation's best comprehensive cancer centers and the hospital's Comprehensive Stroke Center is certified by the Joint Commission to provide complex stroke care.[36] Harvard University researchers, in a study commissioned by The Commonwealth Fund, identified RWJUH as one of the top-ten hospitals in the nation for clinical quality.[37][38] RWJUH is also a four-time recipient of the Magnet Award for Nursing Excellence.[39] The Institute for Diversity and Health Management, an American Hospital Association (AHA) affiliate, has recognized RWJUH as a "Best in Class" hospital for diversity management and addressing health disparities.

In 2011 the hospital was listed on the "100 Top Grossing Hospitals in America" as the 45th highest grossing hospital in America by Becker's Hospital Review.[40]

RWJUH Somerset is nationally recognized as a Magnet® hospital for nursing excellence.[41] Its Steeplechase Cancer Center is designated as a Comprehensive Community Cancer Center by the American College of Surgeons' Commission on Cancer[42] – a distinction achieved by only one in four hospitals nationwide that treat cancer patients. The Joint Surgery Institute at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Somerset has earned the Joint Commission's Gold Seal of Approval for total knee- and total hip-replacement surgery.[43] The medical center is designated as a Primary Stroke Center by the Joint Commission and the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services.[36] It is one of nine Medical Coordination Centers established by the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services to coordinate communication among emergency responders during a disaster situation.[44]

• List of hospitals in New Jersey
• List of teaching hospitals

• Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital