Dr. Alexander Salerno is the founder and CEO of Nirvana Healthcare Management Services (NHMS), a physician-led, community-rooted healthcare network headquartered in Essex County, New Jersey. A board-certified internist, healthcare visionary, and dynamic entrepreneur, Dr. Salerno is redefining how urban medicine is delivered, placing patients at the center of a system designed with compassion, access, and innovation in mind.
Dr. Salerno’s journey began with Salerno Medical Associates (SMA), a practice born from the merger of his parents’ two original medical offices in East Orange, NJ. Today, that legacy has grown into a robust, integrated healthcare system spanning nine divisions—a mix of primary and specialty care practices united under the Nirvana banner.
Nirvana Healthcare Today:
Primary Care Divisions:
Salerno Medical Associates (SMA) – East Orange
Metropolitan Medical Group (MMG) – East Orange
Roseville Medical Society (RMS) – Newark
North Ward Medical Arts (NWMA) – Newark
Armenti Medical Group (AMG) – Newark
Warren County Medical Associates (WCMA) – Hackettstown
Pure Integrated Medicine (PIM) – Bloomfield
Specialty Practices:
North Ward Behavioral Health (NWBH) – Newark
Newark Vein and Vascular Center (NVVC) – Newark
Wave Neurology Associates (WNA) – Manalapan
Dr. Salerno continues to lead with both heart and foresight. In 2005, he launched the Community Healthcare Outreach Program (CHOP) to care for homebound seniors and individuals with complex medical and behavioral health needs. Recognized with the Francis Black Humanitarian Award in Healthcare, CHOP has been a model for home-based compassionate care.
In 2010, Dr. Salerno founded the Urban Healthcare Initiative Program (UHIP), a grassroots movement that brings health education and preventive services to barbershops, salons, churches, temples, and other trusted community spaces—empowering individuals to become active participants in their health journey.
His commitment to innovation is also reflected in major renovations to SMA’s headquarters between 2005 and 2007, transforming the clinical experience to one that feels welcoming, dignified, and patient-first. This same vision continues today through digital health solutions, modern facility design, and cutting-edge programs, including telemedicine, remote monitoring, and population health management.
NHMS was formally established in 2020 to bring together these growing divisions under one mission: to create an accessible, culturally sensitive, multidisciplinary health network that serves urban, suburban, and rural New Jersey communities, with a strong focus on equity and continuity of care.
A Physician, Educator, and Advocate
Dr. Salerno is a retired Captain in the U.S. Air Force Medical Reserves, holds a Master’s in Healthcare Administration (MHA), and has served as an adjunct professor at NYU School of Nurse Practitioners since 2008. He has also been a consultant and speaker for several major pharmaceutical companies and maintains affiliations with multiple hospitals, including UMDNJ, Hackensack University Medical Center, and Newark Beth Israel Medical Center.
With over 95% of NHMS providers being bilingual, Dr. Salerno ensures that care is delivered with both clinical excellence and cultural relevance. Whether in English, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, French-Creole or Arabic—patients are treated with dignity and respect.
Dr. Salerno is a staunch believer in proactive medicine, emphasizing wellness, education, and prevention over reactive, condition-based care. He remains steadfast in his belief that healthcare is a right, not a privilege, and that medical providers must be healers, educators, and advocates all at once.
His Inspiration
“As a child,” he reflects, “I would accompany my parents on house calls. I watched not only how they treated illness, but how they treated people—with compassion, patience, and understanding. That shaped everything I do today.”
Four generations later, families still entrust their care to Dr. Salerno’s network. From the grandparents to their grandchildren, NHMS continues to be a symbol of trusted, whole-person care in New Jersey.
“For me,” he says, “medicine is not just about clinical results. It’s about listening, connecting, and serving. That’s what Nirvana Healthcare stands for—and that’s what drives me every single day.”
