Q & A Keta Medical Center Opens in Westfield

Foto: Keta Medical Center co-founders Dr. Cheryl Malina (left) and Dr. Haviva Malina (right), who provided the accompanying Q&A.

1. Please introduce Keta Medical Center and tell us why you chose Westfield for your newest location.

Keta Medical Center provides physician-led ketamine therapy for people struggling with depression, anxiety, PTSD, OCD, and other mental health conditions. We founded Keta Medical Center to give patients another path forward when traditional approaches haven’t provided sufficient relief, combining evidence-based treatment with personalized, compassionate care.

We chose Westfield because we were hearing directly from people in the area who were looking for treatment. Some of our patients were traveling all the way to our Manhattan location or to our Oradell location from Union County. Opening in Westfield has allowed us to make treatment more accessible to patients in the area and serve this community closer to home.

2. For readers who may be unfamiliar with it, what is ketamine therapy, and how does it differ from traditional antidepressants?

Ketamine therapy is an innovative treatment for depression and other mental health conditions. Spravato, an esketamine nasal spray, is the most common treatment option. It is FDA-approved for treatment-resistant depression and is covered by insurance for eligible patients. We also offer IV ketamine infusions.

Conventional antidepressants primarily target neurotransmitters such as serotonin and norepinephrine and can take several weeks to work. By contrast, ketamine acts on a different neurotransmitter called glutamate and can produce effects much more rapidly. It also promotes neuroplasticity, the brain’s ability to “rewire” neural connections, and this can be a very powerful healing tool. In addition, ketamine doesn’t cause many of the unpleasant side effects that patients often experience with oral antidepressants.

3. What conditions do you treat at the Westfield center, and who may be a good candidate for treatment?

At our Westfield clinic, as at all our clinics, we treat depression, anxiety, PTSD, OCD, postpartum depression, and alcohol use disorder. Ketamine therapy is typically considered for people who continue to experience symptoms despite trying conventional treatments, or who have experienced intolerable side effects from psychiatric medications.

Every patient is carefully evaluated by myself or another physician at our practice. We review their symptoms, treatment history, medical conditions, current medications, and goals. We also collaborate with their outside providers or, if needed, provide in-house psychiatrists and therapists. All this allows us to determine whether ketamine therapy is safe and appropriate for that individual and how it may fit into their broader care plan.

“We founded Keta Medical Center
to give patients another path forward
when traditional approaches haven’t provided sufficient relief.”

4. What treatment options do you offer, and what should a patient expect during a typical visit?

At Keta Medical Center, we offer both Spravato (esketamine), which is a ketamine derivative, and IV ketamine. Spravato is an FDA-approved nasal spray that’s covered by insurance for eligible patients with treatment-resistant depression. We also offer ketamine-assisted psychotherapy (KAP) and integrated psychiatric care.

A visit begins with our medical team checking the patient’s vitals. During treatment, patients relax in a private room with a reclining chair, a personal eye mask and blanket, noise-cancelling headphones, and an ipad with curated playlists. Ketamine can produce a temporary altered state of consciousness, which may include feelings of dissociation or a sense of detachment from one’s usual surroundings. Treatment lasts two hours, with our medical team monitoring and supporting the patient throughout.

5. Ketamine is sometimes misunderstood because of its recreational use. How is it administered safely in a medical setting, and who supervises each treatment?

Ketamine, like any drug, can be dangerous when it is used recreationally. However, when administered in the dose and interval recommended by the FDA in a controlled medical setting, it is safe. Across decades of clinical use and hundreds of registered clinical trials for depression, there have been zero reported deaths or serious cardiac events tied to people receiving ketamine for mental health conditions in supervised medical settings.

At Keta Medical Center, the medicine is administered on-site under the direct supervision of experienced emergency medicine physicians. Our medical team monitors blood pressure, heart rate, and oxygen levels throughout treatment and follows established clinical protocols for patient screening, dosing, and monitoring.

6. How can someone learn more or schedule a consultation at your Westfield location?

Anyone interested in learning more can start with a free, 20-minute phone consultation with one of our intake specialists. During the call, we answer questions and explain the next steps. This is followed by a medical evaluation by me — the medical director — or another physician.

We also coordinate the treatment plan with the patient’s existing psychiatrist or therapist. Our team will also check insurance coverage and help determine which treatment is best for you. To learn more about our Westfield location or schedule a free consultation, you can visit the Keta Medical Center website or give us a call at 201-561-8103.