Hamilton, like New Brunswick, is starting to look like one giant hospital. Already home to two and soon-to-be-three hospitals, Hamilton recently welcomed Children’s Specialized Hospital into the neighborhood a 12,000-square-foot pediatric rehabilitation center at 3575 Quakerbridge Road.
Based in Mountainside, Children’s is one of the largest pediatric rehabilitation networks in the country and Mercer County’s only comprehensive pediatric facility. A member of the Robert Wood Johnson Health System, the hospital treats infants, children and young adults from birth to 21 years of age at outpatient, acute rehabilitation and long-term care at sites in Mountainside, Fanwood, Toms River, Elizabeth, Newark and Millburn.
Like many hospitals faced with labor shortages and shrinking revenues, Children’s is weathering tough financial times by reaching out into new communities and providing more outpatient services. Children’s has plans to add three new facilities in the state by 2007 including a new inpatient rehabilitation center in New Brunswick.
Princeton resident Frank V. Castello, M.D., is leading the hospital through its expansion phase. He was appointed interim president and CEO of Children’s following the sudden death of president and CEO Rex Riley on March 17.
A 36-percent increase in total patients served in the past two years is pushing Children’s to expand, said Dr. Castello. "I think the demand is there for services for children," he said. "We’ve attempted to bring our outpatient services closer to the people who need them."
The hospital offers a range of rehabilitative services to children with congenital anomalies as well as children who have suffered traumatic brain, spine or orthopedic injuries.
A native of Brooklyn and Queens, Dr. Castello has practiced pediatric critical care medicine in the state since 1987, first as director of the pediatric intensive care unit at Children’s Hospital of New Jersey at United Hospital Medical Center and then as director of pediatric critical care at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital. He joined Children’s in May 2000. He lives with wife, Carol, and his family on Dodds Lane. His 13-year-old son, Matthew, attends John Witherspoon Middle School and his 9-year-old daughter, Jessica, attends Littlebrook. Both are soccer players. "I do a lot of watching my kids play sports," he said. "I’m the dad on the sidelines."
At Children’s, however, Dr. Castello is thrown into the fray. "I really had no preparation, and Rex (Riley) was a close friend in addition to a very respected colleague so his loss was devastating both personally and to the organization," he explained. "So I was thrust into this role. I will do my best to lead the hospital to really accomplish the vision Rex set out for us."
But labor shortages and shrinking revenues are proving considerable challenges. "All hospitals are faced with significant financial issues," said Dr. Castello, "I think the issues for us will be recruitment of an adequate number of clinicians and reimbursement for services. The insurance companies look at things from a very short-term perspective."
An obligation to provide services that may not necessarily increase the bottom line is one of the things that comes along with being a premier pediatric care facility, said Dr. Castello. "We will do things for patients that we know we lose money on," he said. "We take care of children that other hospitals won’t take even if it’s not in our organization’s best interest."

