Marlborough Hospital Welcomes New CEO, Launches Capital Campaign
PHOTO/COURTESY
Officials at Marlborough Hospital recently announced a $1.5 million capital campaign to construct a new cancer center.
Changes are afoot at Marlborough Hospital.
At the same time the hospital - which is part of the Worcester-based UMass Memorial Health Care system - named a new president and CEO this week, hospital officials have also kicked off a campaign to raise $1.5 million to construct a cancer center at the facility.
Karen Moore reported for her first day of work at 5:30 a.m. on Monday as the new president and CEO of the hospital, taking over for interim CEO Douglas Brown, who had served in the role since May. Moore wanted to get a feel for the hospital's emergency room early in the morning and she said she walked away impressed.
"The amount of activity in our emergency room is a great example to tell you that people want to get care in their community hospital," she said. "Our ER is extremely busy for a campus of this size, which speaks to the value members of the community put in this hospital."
As Moore takes over the reins, one of her first tasks will be overseeing a major capital campaign to raise money for the hospital's planned cancer center.
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Moore came to Marlborough Hospital after three years at Kindred Hospital Park View in Springfield, where she served as president and CEO. During that time, revenue increased 10 percent and admissions grew 20 percent while the hospital implemented electronic medical records at the facility. Before that, Moore spent 11 years at Baystate Franklin Medical Center in Greenfield.
Moore said her combined experience at both medical institutions has prepared her well for the Marlborough Hospital gig.
Kindred Hospital is a long-term acute care hospital, meaning that patients typically have longer stays as compared to the patients at Marlborough and Baystate Franklin hospitals. Moore said her experience working in both settings has prepared her well for the Marlborough Hospital job.
Still, it's a difficult time to be a health care administrator. State officials and market forces are putting pressure on health care providers and insurers to cut costs. Moore said the industry "can't move fast enough," toward health care cost reform.
"The costs are getting to be more of a burden than any individual or business can handle," she said. "This is really a wonderful opportunity to both improve the patient experience, outcomes of care and achieve lower costs."
One of the biggest challenges she said, is just implementing change. She likened fixing health care to changing the tires on a vehicle traveling 100 miles per hour. One solution, she said, though, is to focus on the community hospitals, like Marlborough's, which can be lower-cost alternatives compared to large major urban hospitals, plus they are closer to where the patients live.
Part of being able to offer more comprehensive care is Marlborough's plan to construct the new cancer treatment center, she said. Last month hospital officials kicked off the $1.5-million fundraising campaign for the Cancer Pavilion at Marlborough Hospital, its official name.
The total construction cost is $12.7 million and it's slated to be a 15,000-square-foot addition to the hospital's north wing that will include oncology, radiation and patient exam areas. Officials hope to break ground on the project in early 2012 and open the facility in early 2013.
The campaign is being run by the hospital's director of development Ellen Carlucci and former chairman of the Marlborough Hospital Board of Trustees Cornelius "Neil" Ferris.
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