UMass Memorial Health (UMM Health) is the clinical partner of the
University of Massachusetts Medical School
The University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School is a public medical school in Worcester, Massachusetts. It is part of the University of Massachusetts system. It is home to three schools: the T.H. Chan School of Medicine, the Morningside Grad ...
and the largest healthcare system in
Central Massachusetts Central Massachusetts is the geographically central region of Massachusetts. Though definitions vary, most include all of Worcester County and the northwest corner of Middlesex County. Worcester, the largest city in the area and the seat of Worces ...
.
It is a
not-for-profit
A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...
/
nonprofit
A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...
healthcare network providing all levels of primary to quartenary healthcare.
History
Memorial Hospital was founded in 1871 as the Washburn Dispensary.
Worcester industrialist
Ichabod Washburn
Ichabod Washburn (1798–1868) was an American Congregational deacon and industrialist from Worcester County, Massachusetts. His financial endowments led to the naming of Washburn College, now Washburn University in Topeka, Kansas and the foundat ...
endowed it through a bequest in memory of his wife and daughters. Memorial Hospital moved to its current location in 1888 and later merged with Hahnemann Hospital (founded in 1896) and Holden Hospital to become the Medical Center of Central Massachusetts.
The University of Massachusetts Medical Center (University Hospital) opened in 1974 as the principal teaching hospital of the
University of Massachusetts Medical School
The University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School is a public medical school in Worcester, Massachusetts. It is part of the University of Massachusetts system. It is home to three schools: the T.H. Chan School of Medicine, the Morningside Grad ...
.
UMass Memorial Health Care was formed in 1998 through the merger of Memorial Hospital with the clinical system of the University of Massachusetts
UMass Medical Center has operated LifeFlight, New England's first hospital-based air ambulance, for over 30 years.
About
UMass Memorial Health (UMM Health) is a not-for-profit healthcare network in Worcester, Massachusetts that is affiliated with the
University of Massachusetts Medical School
The University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School is a public medical school in Worcester, Massachusetts. It is part of the University of Massachusetts system. It is home to three schools: the T.H. Chan School of Medicine, the Morningside Grad ...
. It consists of UMass Memorial Medical Center, a Level 1 Trauma Center and the major teaching hospital of UMass Medical School; two community hospitals; and a number of ambulatory clinics throughout Central Massachusetts.
UMMH has over 1,700 active medical staff, and 3,166 registered nurses active in over 22 communities. They offer emergency services such as LifeFlight; long-term care facilities; and home health, rehabilitation and behavioral health services. They host a variety of informational patient seminars and classes on health-related topics throughout the year.
UMass Memorial Medical Center
UMass Memorial Medical Center consists of three campuses in
Worcester, Massachusetts
Worcester ( , ) is a city and county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, the city's population was 206,518 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the second-List of cities i ...
: University Campus, Memorial Campus, and Hahnemann Campus. The largest of which is the University Campus, which is a 640-bed
non-profit
A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...
,
tertiary
Tertiary ( ) is a widely used but obsolete term for the geologic period from 66 million to 2.6 million years ago.
The period began with the demise of the non-avian dinosaurs in the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event, at the start ...
, research and
academic medical center
An academic medical centre (AMC), variously also known as academic health science centre, academic health science system, or academic health science partnership, is an educational and healthcare institute formed by the grouping of a health profes ...
located in Worcester, servicing central Massachusetts. UMass Memorial Medical Center the region's only academic university-level teaching center. The hospital is owned by the UMass Memorial Health system and is the largest hospital in the system. UMass Memorial Medical Center is affiliated with the
University of Massachusetts Medical School
The University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School is a public medical school in Worcester, Massachusetts. It is part of the University of Massachusetts system. It is home to three schools: the T.H. Chan School of Medicine, the Morningside Grad ...
. Emergency Care at UMass Memorial Medical Center is the only center in the region that is verified by the American College of Surgeons as a
Level 1 Adult and Pediatric Trauma Center. They also offer LifeFlight air ambulance for emergency response. Attached to the medical center is the UMass Hospital for Children that treats infants, children, adolescents, and young adults up to the age of 21.
History
The hospital was known as Memorial Hospital, which was founded in 1871 as the Washburn Dispensary. Worcester industrialist
Ichabod Washburn
Ichabod Washburn (1798–1868) was an American Congregational deacon and industrialist from Worcester County, Massachusetts. His financial endowments led to the naming of Washburn College, now Washburn University in Topeka, Kansas and the foundat ...
endowed it through a bequest in memory of his wife and daughters. Memorial Hospital moved to its current location in 1888 and later merged with Hahnemann Hospital (founded in 1896) and Holden Hospital to become the Medical Center of Central Massachusetts.
Hahnemann Hospital, founded 1896 The University of Massachusetts Medical Center (University Hospital) opened in 1974 as the principal teaching hospital of the
University of Massachusetts Medical School
The University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School is a public medical school in Worcester, Massachusetts. It is part of the University of Massachusetts system. It is home to three schools: the T.H. Chan School of Medicine, the Morningside Grad ...
.
In 1991, UMass Medical Center became the home of Worcester EMS services after
Worcester City Hospital closed.
UMass Memorial Healthcare was formed in 1998 through the merger of Memorial Hospital with the clinical system of the University of Massachusetts. The merger was a result of higher insurance costs and the system has increased hospital revenue and amount of patient beds. UMass Medical Center has operated LifeFlight, New England's first hospital-based air ambulance, for over 30 years.
In 2018, a renovation project to the medical center was completed that included a renovated 250,000 squ. ft of public space. The hospital also renovated patient care units and nurses' stations on all floors to provide updated services to patients and hospital staff alike.
In late February 2020, hospital authorities disclosed that they had a patient under quarantine at UMass Memorial Medical Center after traveling to China. The hospital has since started a program to prepare for higher amounts of COVID-19 cases.
In March 2020,
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts (BCBSMA) is a state licensed nonprofit private health insurance company under the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association with headquarters in Boston.
The Boston location located on 133 Federal Street is curren ...
chose UMass Memorial Medical Center as a Blue Distinction Center for multiple specialties because of the hospitals' dedication to patient safety and better health outcomes.
UMass Memorial Health Children's Medical Center
The UMass Memorial Health Children's Medical Center is a pediatric acute care hospital located in Worcester, Massachusetts. The hospital has 101 beds and is affiliated with the
University of Massachusetts Medical School
The University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School is a public medical school in Worcester, Massachusetts. It is part of the University of Massachusetts system. It is home to three schools: the T.H. Chan School of Medicine, the Morningside Grad ...
. The hospital is a member of UMass Memorial Health and provides comprehensive pediatric specialties and subspecialties to pediatric patients aged 0–21 throughout central Massachusetts. UMass Memorial Children's Medical Center also features the only
level 1 pediatric trauma center in the region. The hospital is the only children's hospital in central Massachusetts.
UMass Memorial Health - HealthAlliance-Clinton Hospital
UMass Memorial Health - HealthAlliance-Clinton Hospital has campuses in Clinton, Leominster and Fitchburg, MA. 40 service areas are available at the hospital, which is a full-service, acute care hospital with 163 beds, over 1,600 employees and 400 physicians. The Central New England HealthAlliance also includes the Simonds Sinon Regional Cancer Center, Simonds-Hurd Complementary Care Center, Outpatient physical therapy centers, and a Home health and hospice agency.
UMass Memorial Health- Marlborough Hospital
UMass Memorial Health- Marlborough Hospital has campuses in Marlborough and Southborough, MA. It campus offers a variety of healthcare services including emergency care, comprehensive cardiac care services, surgical services, behavioral health services, diagnostic imaging, intensive care, cancer care, and laboratory services. Its other services include Woman's imaging, MedWorks (Occupational Health), Colonoscopy/endoscopy imaging, and a variety of physician specialists. They also offer physical rehabilitation services in Marlborough.
Awards and recognition
* UMass Memorial Medical Center has ranked as number one hospital in
New England
New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...
for surviving and treating a
heart attack
A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...
for many years.
Number one hospital in New England to treat and survive a heart attack. In 2008, the hospital ranked second in the US for heart attack survival.
* UMass Memorial Medical Center was recognized in Becker's Hospital Review (2016 edition) as being in among "100 hospitals and health systems with great heart programs".
* UMass Memorial Medical Center was identified as being amongst the Top 50 Cardiovascular Hospitals in the US by Truven Health Analytics.
* The cardiac surgery program of UMass Memorial Medical Center, UMMHC's flagship hospital, has been awarded the highest quality 3-star rating for performing
Coronary artery bypass surgery, cardiac bypass graft surgery by the US
Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS) consistently since reporting started in 2006. The hospital has also been awarded the highest 3-star quality rating for
aortic valve replacement
Aortic valve replacement is a procedure whereby the failing aortic valve of a patient's heart is replaced with an artificial heart valve. The aortic valve may need to be replaced because:
* The valve is leaky (aortic insufficiency, also known as ...
and combined cardiac surgery. Only 1.6% of US cardiac surgery programs (17 of 1009) in the
STS
STS, or sts, may refer to:
Medicine
* Secondary traumatic stress, a condition which leads to a diminished ability to empathize
* Sequence-tagged site, a gene-reference in genomics
* Soft-tissue sarcoma
* Staurosporine, an antibiotic
* STS (gen ...
database achieved such high-quality standards in all three categories.
* UMass Memorial Medical Center was the first hospital in Central Massachusetts to offer transcatheter aortic valve replacement and mitral valve repair. It is also among the only hospitals in New England with access to custom manufactured fenestrated endovascular grafts for minimally invasive treatment of thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysms.
* UMass Memorial Medical center has received the award of best Health-system pharmacy by the Massachusetts Society of Health-system pharmacists.
* UMass Memorial received the 11th annual Cheers Award by the
Institute for Safe Medication Practices
The Institute for Safe Medication Practices (ISMP) is an American 501(c)(3) organization focusing on the prevention of medication errors and promoting safe medication practices. It is affiliated with the ECRI Institute
ECRI (originally founded ...
in recognition of the medical center's work to prevent medication errors and promote patient safety. The UMass
pharmacy residency
Pharmacy residency is education a pharmacist can pursue beyond the degree required for licensing as a pharmacist (in the United States of America: PharmD). A pharmacy residency program allows for the implementation of skill set and knowledge acqui ...
program is the largest in New England. UMass Memorial and UMass Medical School offer one of only two postgraduate residency programs in the country dedicated to medication safety.
* Clinton Hospital is consistently rated among the state leaders in patient satisfaction; in 2013 Clinton Hospital was declared the best hospital in New England for patient satisfaction. HealthAlliance hospital ranked number one in safety in Massachusetts by a leading consumer ratings magazine in 2012 and 2013.
Criticism and restructuring
UMass Memorial Health Care faced a downhill financial slide over a 5-year period, starting with an operating surplus of $83 million in 2009 to a $55 million operating loss in the 2013 fiscal year.
The organization was criticized for being inefficient. In addition, changes in healthcare reimbursement impacted the Medical Center more severely than other hospitals as its proportion of
Medicaid
Medicaid in the United States is a federal and state program that helps with healthcare costs for some people with limited income and resources. Medicaid also offers benefits not normally covered by Medicare, including nursing home care and pers ...
patient business, the state-federal health plan for the poor that tends to be less lucrative for hospitals, is 25% higher than the statewide average (24% in 2012 compared to state average of 19%).
The financial decline culminated in the downgrading of the system's rating by
Moody's Investors service
Moody's Investors Service, often referred to as Moody's, is the bond credit rating business of Moody's Corporation, representing the company's traditional line of business and its historical name. Moody's Investors Service provides international ...
in 2013.
In response to this criticism and challenges, UMMHC underwent significant restructuring towards a more lean business model. Shedding of assets included the sale of UMass home healthcare and hospice business, UMass outreach laboratories and the Caitlin Raymond International Registry (although dissociation from the latter has been postulated to also relate to the public
criticism of the Registry's practices). A number of employee positions (reportedly over 500), predominantly in non-patient contact areas, were also eliminated in an effort to improve system efficiency.
In December 2013, UMMHC announced its intent to transfer ownership of Wing Memorial hospital to
Baystate Health
Baystate Health is a not-for-profit integrated health system headquartered in Springfield, Massachusetts, serving Western Massachusetts and the Knowledge Corridor Region of Massachusetts and Connecticut. The system has 5 hospitals, over 80 medi ...
in
Springfield, MA
Springfield is a city in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, United States, and the seat of Hampden County. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers: the western Westfield River, the ...
. Following the above changes, along with an effort to standardize clinical and business processes, the system reported a stabilization of its financial position in 2014.
See also
*
University of Massachusetts
The University of Massachusetts is the five-campus public university system and the only public research system in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The university system includes five campuses (Amherst, Boston, Dartmouth, Lowell, and a medica ...
*
University of Massachusetts Medical School
The University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School is a public medical school in Worcester, Massachusetts. It is part of the University of Massachusetts system. It is home to three schools: the T.H. Chan School of Medicine, the Morningside Grad ...
References
External links
UMass Memorial HealthUniversity of Massachusetts Medical School
{{authority control
Hospital networks in the United States
Healthcare in Massachusetts
University of Massachusetts Medical School
Teaching hospitals in Massachusetts