Page 31 - Healthcare Heroes 2025

HealthcareHEROES
A P R O G R A M O F B U S I N E S S W E S T & H E A L T H C A R E N E W S
“As a primary
care physician
at Baystate
Brightwood
Health Center
and associate
professor
of Medicine
at UMass
Medical School
– Baystate, he
has shaped
the way care
is delivered to
underserved
and
marginalized
communities
across
Western
Mass.”
As medical director for Hampden County’s correctional
centers, Lincoln cares for patients (inmates) at four facilities
across the region, but especially what’s known as the ‘main
institution’ in Ludlow, which has a population of approximately
800 men.
He helps treat what Williams describes as an older, sicker
inmate population (more on this later) with a focus on all
aspects of care, but the especially the HIV population.
“That’s his passion,” said Williams, adding that Lincoln is also
medical director of the opioid treatment program.
With the Healthcare Hero award in the Lifetime
Achievement category, Lincoln adds some additional
recognition for this work not only with the incarcerated, but
also with the underserved population that frequents the
Baystate Brightwood Health Center in Springfield’s North End,
and also for his work as an educator and mentor.
“As a primary care physician at Baystate Brightwood Health
Center and associate professor of Medicine at UMass Medical
School – Baystate, he has shaped the way care is delivered to
underserved and marginalized communities across Western Mass.,”
said Dr. Audrey Guhn, medical director of Brightwood Health Center.
“His dedication to those who are too often overlooked by traditional
healthcare systems makes him not only a role model, but a true
Healthcare Hero.”
Impact Statement
When it comes to the Healthcare Heroes program and the many
categories created to recognize the contributions of individual
honorees, Lincoln checks essentially every box BusinessWest has
created.
Indeed, he’s a provider and administrator, but also an educator,
innovator, and collaborator with a strong focus on community. And
because he’s been doing all this for decades now, he’s being honored
Dr. Thomas Lincoln (center) with Hampden County Sheriff
Nick Cocchi and Keisha Williams, responsible health authority
and director of Nursing for the Hampden County Sheriff’s
Office.
in the Lifetime Achievement category.
His story is somewhat similar to that of the 2024 honoree in this
category, Dr. Andrew Balder, attending physician at Baystate Mason
Square Neighborhood Health Center, who has also worked tirelessly
on behalf of the underserved, with a specific focus focused on the
homeless population and infant mortality, child maternal health, and
birth outcomes. Yet, their careers have taken different, but equally
impactful, paths.
Lincoln’s story begins in Concord, Mass., where he was drawn to
ACCEPTING NOMINATIONS!
Congratulations!
BusinessWest’s annual
recognition programs
celebrate those who are
stepping up to make the
413 a better place to live,
work, and do business. These
programs— Difference Makers,
Forty Under 40, Healthcare
Heroes, and Women of
Impact — identify individuals,
groups, and institutions that
are changing lives. You know
a candidate, or several, that
fits this description. Help us
identify our next honorees.
Nominate someone, or some
group, today!
NOMINATIONS ARE
OPEN YEAR-ROUND!
Business W estBUSINESSWEST COM
THE BUSINESS JOURNAL OF WESTERN MASSACHUSETTS
D R . T H O M A S L I N C O L N
Congratulations to Dr. Lincoln on receiving the
BusinessWest Healthcare Heroes Lifetime
Achievement Award, honoring his decades of
dedication, leadership, and compassionate
care in our community.
www.BusinessWest.com
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