Baystate Health Recognized as 2023 Frontline Healthcare Worker Champion
SPRINGFIELD — Baystate Health has been recognized by the National Fund for Workforce Solutions as one of the 2023 winners of the CareerSTAT Frontline Healthcare Worker Champion awards. The program recognizes organizations that create good jobs and build equitable workplaces by making significant investments in frontline workers.
“This award is meaningful to Baystate because it validates our sustainable practices in creating career pathways to quality jobs. As an anchor institution in the community, we are committed to building our workforce from members of our local community,” said Patty Samra, vice president of Human Resources Operations. “Our frontline colleagues are critical to delivering upon Baystate’s mission of improving the health of our communities every day, with quality and compassion, now and in the future.”
Baystate Health offers workers a number of opportunities to advance their careers, including a Workforce Pipeline, through which workers receive training to fill some of the most in-demand healthcare jobs, such as pharmacy technician, cardiac monitor technician, medical assistant, and patient-care technician. All Workforce Pipeline programs come at no cost to the employee, and some are pay-to-train apprenticeships.
“We are excited for the return of our signature employer-recognition program,” said Amanda Cage, president and CEO of the National Fund for Workforce Solutions. “As we strive to tackle structural, racial inequities that have held many individuals back, we are proud to recognize healthcare organizations whose work reflects our vision of ensuring that all workers have the resources they need to thrive, that race does not dictate employment outcomes, and that all jobs are good jobs.”
Champions create a worker-centered culture of learning and leverage their influence to create organizational and regional change where employers, workers, and communities thrive. Honorees are selected for using workforce-development strategies that promote racial equity and inclusion, accessible training and skills development opportunities, and frontline career progression. Organizations chosen as Emerging Champions demonstrate a similar commitment but are earlier in their journey to build equitable and inclusive workplaces for frontline workers.
CareerSTAT is a healthcare-sector strategy of the National Fund rooted in the power of peer learning. The peer-led recognition program, which seeks to share workforce-development innovation and accelerate the adoption of best practices, is core to the National Fund’s mission. CareerSTAT and the Frontline Healthcare Worker Champions program are made possible through support from MetLife Foundation and the World Education Services (WES) Mariam Assefa Fund.
“The WES Mariam Assefa Fund congratulates this year’s awardees for their commitment to creating more worker-centered, equitable workplaces,” said Lauren Crain, director of U.S. programs and strategy at the WES Mariam Assefa Fund. “As a funder focused on supporting economic inclusion for immigrants and refugees, who make up a large part of our healthcare workforce, we are excited to support the National Fund’s CareerSTAT program and to see healthcare employers supporting access to quality jobs for their frontline workforce.”