SJM_PROFILE_Advocare_0823 . qxp_profile 8 / 17 / 23 1 : 14 PM Page 1 B U S I N E S S S P O T L I G H T Behind founder Dr . Joseph Hassman and his four children , Advocare Berlin Medical Associates has been providing the utmost in care to South Jersey residents for more than 50 years . by MATT COSENTINO The Family Way telemedicine is a new avenue that won’t playeda part in the success and longevity lthough it may be hard to imagine ever go away . I think we’re always going of Advocare Berlin Medical Associates . while driving through towns like to utilize telemedicine . ” “ Weenjoy working together , ” David says . AVoorheesand Cherry Hill today , South Being a dependable health care provider “ You would think it would be a bad for - Jerseywas still largely a rural area when for the community is nothing new ; after mulabut it actually works out really well . Dr.Joseph Hassman first started his med - all , the Hassman patriarch has been doing There’s no doubt there are some chal - icalpractice in Berlin more than 50 years it for half a century . Dr . Hassman serves as lengesbut we spend a lot of time together , ago.In those simpler times he instantly the physician for Eastern Regional High bothin and out of the office . ” formeda bond with the members of the School and the practice takes its commit - Thepractice has evolved through the community , who relied on him for every - ment to the region seriously . years , especially over the past decade as thingfrom delivering babies to treatment “ There are current patients who , not it moved from a single building on the of common illnesses . The relationships only did my father treat their grandpar - White Horse Pike to its current location were so strong that some patients even ents , but he delivered their parents . So on Cross Keys Road , which paved the paidtheir bills with bushels of tomatoes there are three generations from the same way for significant expansion . Advocare orother crops from their farms . family coming to this office , ” David says . BerlinMedical Associates is now a multi - Fast forward to 2023 , and of course “ My dad set the bar very high . He disciplinary practice offering specialists the landscape has changed drastically . taught us how important relationships infamily medicine , pediatrics , pain man - Yetthe practice — now known as Advocare are , not only with fellow physicians but agement , gastroenterology , cardiology , BerlinMedical Associates — is still thriving , with the patient population . That aspect nephrologyand ophthalmology . and Dr . Hassman continues to see patients of practicing with people skills has defi - Thatkind of diversity in practitioners while recently celebrating his 88th nitely transcended to all of us . ” is rare in a private family practice and is birthday . All four of his children have Advocare Berlin Medical Associates usually only found in large health care followed him into medicine , with three has become a fixture in South Jersey and systems . Not only does it allow for an joininghim at the Berlin office : Dr . Elissa shows no signs of slowing down . Who easyflow of communication among the Hassman , Dr . David Hassman and Dr . knows , maybe one of Joseph’s 19 grand - variousphysicians , but patients welcome MichaelHassman . children will even join the practice going to the same office for all of their Hisoldest child , Dr . Howard Hassman , someday . Although several have entered medicalneeds . also works with the family as the chief into the health care field , none are slated “ Thefamiliarity of it is very comforting scientificofficer at the Hassman Research for medical school — yet . for most people , ” David says . “ They can Institute . Elissa specializes in ophthal - “ We love this area ; we’ve been here seeso many specialists under one roof . ” mology , while David and Michael focus for 50 years and we’ll be here for many With the responsibility of treating all on family medicine . All four received more to come , ” David says . “ It’s been a members of the family for a number of theirdegrees from the Philadelphia Col - great ride . We never would have been reasons , Advocare has been fortunate to lege of Osteopathic Medicine , just like able to predict this , but everyone in our remain open throughout the COVID - 19 theirfather . n familyrelishes in it completely . ” pandemic . It embraced telemedicine at “ It’snot so much that we were following the peak of the crisis , and with more inhis footsteps but we all grew up knowing patients now feeling comfortable with thisis what we wanted to do , ” David says . on - site appointments , safety is prioritized “ He was a role model and we all looked Advocare Berlin with an emphasis on masks , hand sani - upto him , but there was never any pres - tizer , distancing and other protocols . sure that this was the path we had to go Medical Associates “ We’re getting back to normal and on and it wasn’t forced on us . Everyone 175 Cross Keys Road | Suite 300A about 90 percent of the office visits are didit for their own individual reasons . ” now in person , ” David says . “ But from Having an actual family as the cor - Berlin | ( 856 ) 767 - 0077 this whole thing we’ve learned that nerstoneof a family practice has certainly AdvocareBMA.com SOUTH JERSEY MAGAZINE volume 20 issue 5 SouthJerseyMagazine.com | 65
