Career Pulse – June 2016
Russo Named President,CAO of Baystate Franklin
GREENFIELD — Cindy Russo has accepted the position of president and chief administrative officer of Baystate Franklin Medical Center (BFMC) and the Baystate Health Northern Region, effective May 31. Russo will replace Dr. Thomas Higgins, who has served as interim president since June 2015.
A graduate of Western Connecticut State University in Danbury with a bachelor’s degree in nursing, Russo received a master’s degree in management with a concentration in healthcare administration from the Hartford Graduate Center. She is currently pursuing her doctorate in health administration at Capella University in Minneapolis.
Russo comes to BFMC from Central Region Hartford Healthcare, a fully integrated healthcare system that includes five acute-care hospitals and various other patient-care service offerings and settings. There, she has served as director, Clinical Services for MidState Medical Center, a 144-bed community hospital including several ambulatory locations; president/CEO, MidState VNA & Hospice; and vice president, Patient Care Services and chief Nursing officer. In 2009, she was promoted to senior vice president, Operations at MidState Medical Center. With the system’s restructuring in 2013, she took on the title of vice president, Operation Central Region.
Prior to joining Hartford Healthcare, Russo held the positions of director of Internal Medicine and Urgent Care at Yale University Health Services and Health Plan in New Haven, Conn., and director for Ambulatory Services and Acute Care at Masonic Geriatric HealthCare Center in Wallingford, Conn.
“I did want to expand myself outside of the territory of Connecticut, with which I am very familiar,” Russo said. “At the same time, I wanted to make sure I was moving to an organization with the kind of reputation and values I’ve been accustomed to at Hartford Healthcare. I certainly found that as I started to explore Baystate Health. As I visited Springfield and Greenfield and met the folks there, the camaraderie I felt initially was so palpable. There is an obvious commitment and loyalty, both from the individuals within the organization and from the community members I met. Everyone I met is making sure that this entity flourishes and that it will be here to serve the healthcare needs of the people of the Baystate Franklin community.”
Russo looks forward to getting involved in some of the organizations in this area once she settles in. “I’m excited about coming and learning from everybody and enjoying the time together, both within the work environment and out in the community as well.”
Nancy Shendell-Falik, president of Baystate Medical Center and senior vice president of Hospital Operations, Baystate Health, noted that “Cindy comes to Baystate with over 20 years of healthcare leadership, building strong community partnerships and physician relationships and fostering the creation of a positive organizational culture. I am thrilled to have Cindy as a partner in leading Baystate Franklin Medical Center and the Baystate Health Northern Region and supporting our health system’s strategic plan.”
Shendell-Falik added, “I would like to extend my appreciation to Dr. Higgins for his leadership at BFMC and the Northern Region this past year, in addition to his duties as chief medical officer. His support and partnership were instrumental to the completion of BFMC’s new surgical facility, which is scheduled to open in June and realize positive results in the areas of safety, quality, patient experience, and financial performance.”
Higgins’ role as chief medical officer has been expanded to include oversight at Baystate Noble Hospital, replacing Dr. Sarah Haessler, who has been serving as interim chief medical officer since March.
HealthSouth Rehabilitation Hospital Taps Hunt as CEO
LUDLOW — John Hunt has been named chief executive officer of Healthsouth Rehabilitation Hospital of Western Massachusetts in Ludlow. A speech-language pathologist by trade, he received both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from UMass Amherst.
Hunt’s career in rehabilitation has spanned almost 30 years as a clinician, director, administrator, private practicioner, consultant, and educator, both regionally and nationally. He has served as a guest speaker and lecturer on the topics of motor speech and swallowing disorders in the neurologically impaired population. His focus has been the improvement of patient care and superior clinical outcomes in the post-acute continuum.
Moran Named President of Baystate Eastern Region
WARE — Michael Moran has been appointed president and chief administrative officer of Baystate Health’s Eastern Region. He had been serving in this role in an interim capacity since Jan. 29.
“Since January, Mike has been deeply engaged with community members, seeking input as the Eastern Region evolves to meet the contemporary needs of patients in Ware, Palmer, and surrounding communities,” said Nancy Shendell-Falik, senior vice president, Hospital Operations, Baystate Health. “He is working with Baystate Health colleagues to bring more primary care and specialty care to the Eastern Region, has ensured the current level of emergency care in Ware will continue, and is building relationships with Eastern Region team members, local leaders, community groups, the region’s EMS services, and many others.”
Moran came to the Eastern Region from a health-system role as vice president for Clinical, Facilities & Guest Services. In his 14 years at Baystate Health, he has had a vast scope of responsibility, at one point overseeing 13 departments and more than 1,300 team members throughout the system. He has been responsible for a broad spectrum of services including cancer, behavioral health, neurosciences and rehabilitation, food and nutrition, facilities, and more.
He is known for building high-performing teams, fostering engagement, and serving as executive leader for Baystate Medical Center’s complex cardiovascular and emergency-room facilities-improvement projects. He led the building of the orthopedic surgery and cancer centers in Springfield and the surgical center under construction at Baystate Franklin Medical Center. He has co-led the health system’s largest and most complex Lean project, which improved patient flow at Baystate Medical Center and resulted in efficiencies of more than $5 million.
The Baystate Health board of trustees and board members for the Eastern Region voted unanimously to make Moran’s appointment permanent.
“Michael brings 27 years of experience in multiple industries, including the military, recreation, hospitality, education, and healthcare,” said Shendell-Falik. “His community involvement includes service to several boards and committees throughout Western Massachusetts. His skills and experiences are well-suited to fulfill the leadership needs of the Eastern Region.”
Chevan Earns National Leadership Award
SPRINGFIELD — Springfield College Department of Physical Therapy Chair Julia Chevan received the Ronnie Leavitt Award for Leadership in the Promotion of Social Responsibility in Physical Therapy at the American Physical Therapy Assoc. (APTA) combined section meetings in Anaheim, Calif.
Established by the APTA Health Policy and Administration Section Global Health Special Interest Group, the Ronnie Leavitt Award recognizes a physical therapist whose contributions and actions have demonstrated leadership in the promotion of social responsibility, locally and/or globally, through service, scholarship, and/or advocacy.
Chevan started her career in physical therapy in 1985, and the themes of her 30 years of work as a physical therapist have always included a focus on social justice and global health issues. In 2011, she was a Fulbright scholar to Rwanda, where she taught and conducted research with her colleagues at Kigali Health Institute. That work spawned a collaboration with Health Volunteers Overseas, a nonprofit organization dedicated to training health professionals globally, that resulted in a two-year USAID grant to provide continuing professional-development programming to promote rehabilitation services throughout Rwanda.
Chevan’s global health work has included teaching and mentoring therapists in the U.S., Armenia, Liberia, Rwanda, and Haiti. Her scholarly endeavors focus on the intersection of health-services research and physical therapy. These endeavors have resulted in publications that have uncovered race and sex disparities among people with lower-extremity amputations in the U.S., and studies of the expenditures and distribution of physical-therapy services.
Morris Named Children’s Miracle Network Champion
SPRINGFIELD — Seven-year-old Morgan “Momo” Morris has been named the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals Champion for 2016-17. She will spend the next year with her family representing the Commonwealth of Massachusetts at events that include a trip to Walt Disney World and a congressional visit to Washington, D.C.
The recognition is in honor of the fighting spirit and determination that Morris used to battle her illness. In being selected for this award, she beat out every other pediatric applicant across Massachusetts. Morgan will be honored at an event Wednesday morning at the Springfield Marriott.
At just 2 years old, Morris was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia. “It started with a cold, then an ear infection that wouldn’t go away. She just kept getting more and more pale, weaker, and sicker,” said Laura Morris, Morgan’s mother. “Her pediatrician said this wasn’t normal and sent her for bloodwork. It wasn’t 24 hours before she was admitted to Baystate Children’s Hospital and diagnosed with leukemia.”
Added Dr. Matthew Richardson, the pediatric oncologist who cared for Morgan, “I remember she was just a toddler when I first met her. The bloodwork came back, and when I looked at it under the microscope, and I could see the leukemia cells circulating throughout her blood.”
After diagnosis, Richardson and his team immediately began transfusions and started chemotherapy. “It was crazy, a change of life in one day,” said Morgan’s father, Jeff Morris. “I truly believe she would not be here today if it were not for the amazing care and attention to detail that was shown to her then and now. Regardless of how sick she was, she loved going to the hospital.”
On Oct. 7, 2013, after two and a half years of chemotherapy, Momo received her last treatment and celebrated with her family. Today she is cancer-free and living life as a happy, healthy, 7-year old girl. She spends time caring for her cat, guinea pig, and dog, and also loves playing princesses, sports, and riding horses.
Jablonski Honored with Community Impact Award
GREENFIELD — Linda Jablonski, assistant nurse manager of the Birthplace at Baystate Franklin Medical Center, was recognized by MotherWoman with its 2016 Community Impact Award. This annual award honors an individual in the community who has worked to improve the lives of mothers and families in the region.
Jablonski has more than 30 years of experience in maternal/child health nursing. In addition to her work at Baystate Franklin, she serves as co-chair of the Franklin County Perinatal Support Coalition (along with Amy Olson from Clinical & Support Options at Baystate Franklin), a group she helped start with the team at the Birthplace, concerned providers in the community, and MotherWoman.
The goal of the coalition is to improve maternal mental healthcare at the community level, and it has had much success implementing universal post-partum depression screening for mothers, training hundreds of providers, and developing a referral network. It also integrates perinatal mental healthcare with trauma-informed and recovery programs to better support mothers with substance-use disorders. The coalition has become the standard for MotherWoman’s community-based perinatal support model, which is now being replicated statewide and has received national awards.
“It has been a privilege to serve alongside a community of physicians, nurse midwives, clinicians, nurses, licensed social workers, counselors, family-support workers, home visitors, peer mentors, and other professionals from over 20 organizations,” Jablonski said. “Together, we have worked to address barriers to care by decreasing stigma, implementing a comprehensive screening and referral program, conducting professional trainings, and fostering collaboration by breaking down silos.”
Graber Wins Outstanding Preceptor Award for 2016
HOLYOKE — The American College of Nurse Midwives (ACNM) awarded its 2016 Outstanding Preceptor Award to certified nurse midwife Rachel Graber of Midwifery Care of Holyoke (MCH), a member of Valley Health Systems and the Holyoke Medical Center (HMC) family.
“The award honors a preceptor of student certified nurse midwives/certified midwives who has shown outstanding qualities for leadership and teaching, been a mentor for multiple students, and has repeatedly promoted high standards of midwifery education,” according to the ACNM website.
Spiros Hatiras, president and CEO of Holyoke Medical Center and Valley Health Systems, noted that “Rachel is highly deserving of this prestigious award for her ability to share the wisdom she has gained in her own experiences and that shared with the Midwifery Care of Holyoke team. Valley Health Systems prides itself on its extraordinary staff, such as Rachel, who provide a culture of helping others succeed.”
Graber was nominated by Sukey Agard Krause, director of the Midwifery Education Program at Baystate Medical Center in Springfield.
“Ms. Graber is an outstanding preceptor, for our students as well as students from other programs,” Krause said. “She gives consistent, kind feedback that nurtures growth. She coordinates and tracks the experiences of the students. She communicates consistently and reliably with our program so that students’ needs are met in a timely fashion. She has shown outstanding preceptor work with students in need of remediation, providing constructive learning plans to move students forward. She is never arbitrary or punitive.”
Graber, who has worked as a midwife since 2008 and been precepting for the last six years, said she was surprised and honored to learn of the award.
“Precepting is just part of what we do here — it is one of the hallmarks of midwifery. We’re very dedicated to training upcoming midwives. We also work with the medical students, although we’re not a teaching hospital,” said Graber, noting that MCH has a longstanding relationship with Baystate’s midwifery-education program.
Typically a student in the ‘integration’ year spends all of their time for 12 weeks with a preceptor in a practice, to gain hands-on experience and confidence in their skills. The eight midwives at MCH share the teaching responsibility and aim to give a well-rounded experience to upcoming nurse midwives, said Graber, who completed her own integration-year clinicals at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Dartmouth, N.H., as well as clinicals in New York City and Connecticut. She earned her master’s degree in nursing from Yale University in New Haven, Conn. and graduated from its nurse-midwifery program. Before that, she earned a bachelor’s degree from UMass Amherst.
Graber started working at Midwifery Care of Holyoke as her first job after graduation. She sees patients in MCH’s two Holyoke offices as well as its Northampton office at 150 Main St., and she delivers babies at the Birthing Center at HMC.
“I really love the practice,” she said. “We just celebrated our 30th anniversary of MCH. It’s a practice that is really ingrained in the community. I love the population here — the diversity of women and families that we see. No one has the same story or the same situation. It’s constantly interesting and challenging, intellectually, emotionally, and spiritually.”
Ziemba Named to New England Dental Office Managers Board
LONGMEADOW — Shauna Ziemba, business manager for McKenna Orthodontics, was recently appointed to the board of directors of New England Dental Office Managers, a study group comprised of dental administrative professionals who meet to learn, network, exchange experiences, share knowledge, discuss challenges, and provide support and encouragement.
As a new board member, Ziemba represents the Pioneer Valley Chapter. She has been actively involved in dental-office administration for 17 years, and offers the group proven expertise in office administrative solutions. As business manager of McKenna Orthodontics, she is responsible for handling office procedures and systems of the three office locations in Longmeadow, Feeding Hills, and Chicopee.
Serving New England since 1918, McKenna Orthodontics provides a range of orthodontic healthcare, including Invisalign, Orchestrate, and traditional braces.
Fisher Leads Field Education Research in Social Work
SPRINGFIELD — Springfield College School of Social Work Professor and Director of Field Education William Fisher is the lead author of a recently released report titled “Findings from the 2015 State of Field Education Survey: A Survey of Directors of Field Education on Administrative Models, Staffing, and Resources.”
Guided by Fisher’s leadership, this national survey of social-work field directors sought information on a number of important issues related to how field education programs are organized. The research also analyzed who is leading the programs and how the programs respond to unique student needs. Additional in-depth reports based on the findings are planned for the future.
The research was conducted with the support of the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE), the accrediting body for social-work programs in the U.S., and the Council on Field Education, which is part of CSWE’s governance and policy-recommending structure.
CWSE has designated field education as the ‘signature pedagogy’ of social-work education, meaning that it is through field experiences and practice in the real world, in conjunction with classroom and project-based learning, that students learn to be social-work professionals.
Fisher has more than 25 years of experience in the social-work field, with emphasis in mental-health and substance-abuse counseling, community organizing, and community mental-health program development.
Hoffman, Orvieto Join Integrative Health Group
SPRINGFIELD — The Integrative Health Group of Springfield welcomes two new practitioners to its team: Carleen Eve Fischer Hoffman, owner of Hand to Paw Reiki, and chiropractor Darlene Orvieto.
The Integrative Health Group is a whole-health facility offering acupuncture, naturopathic medicine, yoga, therapeutic touch, and, most recently, Reiki and chiropractic. Located at 1502 Allen St., the group is adjacent to Better Life Whole Foods in the Bicentennial Plaza in Springfield.
“I believe in their mission. The group is comprised of wonderful holistic practitioners who all do amazing work, so it is a good match,” Hoffman said. “I hope to help people feel better holistically and introduce them to a different type of practice.”
Hoffman practices Reiki, which is the use of an ancient form of Japanese healing that combines ‘rei’ (spirit) and ‘ki’ (energy) to help people or their pets. She started her business, Hand to Paw Reiki, in 2014, focusing on pets originally. At the Integrative Health Group, her practice will focus on her clients with two legs. She also offers Reiki at SkinCatering, a full-service spa in Springfield.
Orvieto brings more than 17 years of experience in chiropractic. She operated a solo practice in Easthampton for many years, and decided to join the Integrative Health Group when she realized it would be an ideal fit for the new model of practice she was looking to adopt.
“I’ve taken a few months to get set up and acclimated, and I have to say I am very impressed with the professionals here,” she said. “The intention of every practitioner is pure, and their experience invaluable. I am excited to become a part of such well-put-together group of people.”
Joe Bonavita founded the Integrative Health Group 13 years ago, inspired by his love for holistic health and as an addition to his health-food store, Better Life Whole Foods.
For nearly 30 years, Better Life Whole Foods has provided the community with organic, all-natural foods, products, and education. Bonavita found a need for holistic-health options in Springfield and outlying areas for people struggling with health issues and who are looking to adopt an improved way of living.
“All the services provided at the Integrative Health Group go hand-in-hand with each other,” said Hoffman. “Reiki and chiropractic are completely complementary.”
The goal of Better Life Whole Foods and the Integrated Health Group is to educate while providing methods and products by which people can improve their health.
“In the same manner that the health-food store operates, this health group is small and personal. We are community-based and locally owned,” said Bonavita. “We don’t have shareholders to satisfy. Financials are not the driving force for us, which is what we see in ‘big medicine’ so often. We can focus more on the care we give.”
To make an appointment with Hoffman, call the Integrative Health Group at (413) 525-7345 or SkinCatering at (413) 282-8772. To schedule an appointment with Orvieto, call (413) 883-6869.
Ailinger Cited for Facility Leadership
LEEDS — The American College of Health Care Administrators (ACHCA) recently honored Mark Ailinger, administrator of Linda Manor Extended Care Facility in Leeds, as a 2016 recipient of the ACHCA Eli Pick Facility Leadership Award.
The award, named in memory of visionary ACHCA member Eli Pick, recognizes administrators whose teams have achieved dimensions of organizational quality that few others have been able to reach.
“I’m honored to receive this recognition, but the results we have achieved at Linda Manor Extended Care Facility are due to the hard work and dedication of every single team member here,” said Ailinger. “We are a five-star CMS-rated facility and hold the Gold Excellence in Quality award from the American Health Care Association, all with the support of the care team at Linda Manor. I’m grateful to all of them.”
Ailinger was one of 247 recipients who received the Eli Pick Facility Leadership Award with virtual recognition. This award recognizes the administrator of record who provided leadership throughout the award year. Eligibility for this award is based on three years of skilled-nursing-facility survey data, including the health, fire (life safety), and complaint surveys, as well as top-quartile performance on designated quality measures. The criteria also included an 80{06cf2b9696b159f874511d23dbc893eb1ac83014175ed30550cfff22781411e5} or greater facility occupancy and a three-year avoidance of a Special Focus Facility status.
For more information about Linda Manor, visit www.lindamanor.org. For more information about ACHCA, call (202) 536-5120 or visit www.achca.org.
