Cooper, U.S. Army Partner For Youth Success

Cooper University Health Care is now a participating employer with the U.S. Army Partnership for Youth Success (PaYS) program, the health system announced on Wednesday. Cooper participates in a number of programs with the military, and trains combat medical teams in trauma medicine and providing important technical research for the United States Military.

The PaYS program is a partnership between the U.S. Army and a cross section of private industry, academia and federal, state, and local public institutes.

The U.S. Army PaYS program guarantees soldiers a job interview and possible employment after their service in the army and provides America’s youth with the unique opportunity to simultaneously serve their country and prepare for their future.

As soldiers prepare to leave the army, their area of specialization is matched to a company in the private sector seeking qualified candidates. Upon separating from the military, the transitioning service member gets help coordinating job applications, interviews, and site visits.

“At Cooper, we value the sacrifices members of the military and their families make for our country, and we are honored to be part of the U.S. Army’s PaYS program to help service members transition to civilian life,” Cooper University Health Care co-CEO Kevin O’Dowd said.

“Cooper has a long-standing commitment to hiring veterans and active military members, and this partnership with the U.S. Army will help us reach more soldiers and connect them with resources to build their post-military careers,” Cooper University Health Care co-CEO Anthony J. Mazzarelli said.

Since PaYS began in 2000, more than 800 leading employers nationwide have partnered with the program.

“It is with great pleasure that the U.S. Army and the Mid-Atlantic Recruiting Battalion announce its partnership with Cooper University Health Care through the Army PaYS program,” said Lt. Col. Brendan P. Toolan, Commander, Mid-Atlantic Army Recruiting Battalion. “This partnership adds tremendous value to recruiting incentives for those young men and women who work and live in the communities that Cooper University Health Care supports. Furthermore, their technical advances in health care and research as well as their veteran support make Cooper a sought-after employer in New Jersey and an excellent choice for Army PaYS.”

Cooper also provides a number of health care services to military personnel and their families. One program is HeroCare Connect, which it offers in partnership with Deborah Heart and Lung Center. HeroCare Connect is a personal, one-stop resource that links military families, active duty and retired military, and veterans with specialty care services close to home and on a timely basis.

The initiative provides convenient and expedited access to specialty care for military patients stationed at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst and veterans across South Jersey, supplementing the primary, gynecologic, and pediatric care available on base.

Cooper also provides a wide range of education and training programs in support of the U.S. Military. In January 2019, Cooper was the first health system in the nation to enter into an agreement with the U. S. Army to provide advanced surgical trauma training to the elite Forward Resuscitation Surgical Team (FRST) through the Army Military-Civilian Trauma Team Training (AMCT3) program.

Most recently, Cooper became the third location in the nation to provide specialized medical training to active duty and reserve personnel from all branches of the U.S. Military as part of Operation SMART (Strategic Medical Asset Readiness Training).

Cooper has trained elite medical providers from every military branch, multiple local, state, and federal government agencies, and international partners.