Waite To Head Baystate Public Affairs

SPRINGFIELD — Barry C. D. Waite of Granby, an accomplished communications specialist who began his career as a medical researcher, has joined Baystate Health System as director of Public Affairs and Strategic Communi- cations.
In his new position, Waite will oversee the development of external and internal communications and be responsible for the areas of media relations, public affairs, special events, and crisis management.

He will also oversee publications and writing services, as well as the Public Affairs staff, within Baystate Health System and will be the chief communications consultant to all of the health system’s affiliates.

Before coming to Baystate, Waite was director of Communications and Marketing for Qualidigm (Connecticut Peer Review Organization Inc.) in Middletown, Conn., where he was responsible for promoting the organization as a major entity in health care quality improvement programs.

While Waite was at Qualidigm, the organization received a Bronze Quill Award of Merit from the International Association of Business Communicators for producing a physician resource guide on improving the quality of care for patients with heart attacks. Under his leadership, Qualidigm also received a Gold Award for most creative marketing applications from the National Calendar Association for producing the 2001 Healthy Grandparents Calendar. Also, in 2000, Waite was awarded the Beneficiary Certificate of Merit by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (formerly the Health Care Financing Administration).

A graduate of Boston College with a bachelor’s degree in Psychology and Biology, Waite began his career as a research assistant at Harvard Medical School and was also a research scientist for T Cell Sciences in Needham. He holds a master’s degree in Health Communications from Tufts University School of Medicine/Emerson College.

“My career path has allowed me to watch Baystate Health System grow and prosper from the periphery,” he said. “Growing up in the Springfield area, I have always had a sense of pride in Baystate’s reputation.

“I am very excited to finally have the opportunity to help the public understand the tremendous resource they have in the team of clinicians, providers, and other professionals at Baystate Health System.”

Waite lives in Granby with his wife, Christy Maxwell.