by John Osborn ·
Friday, October 11, 2024
The Healey-Driscoll administration announced the membership of the Nashoba Valley working group Tuesday, but aside from Harvard’s state senator and state representative, the town has no official representation.
The group was created “to address the health care needs of the region following Steward Health Care’s closure of Nashoba Valley Medical Center,” according to a press release posted Oct. 8 by the Executive Office of Health and Human Services. The 32-member group includes hospital executives and health care providers, fire chiefs, community leaders, and elected officials.
Paul Harasimowicz, former chief of surgery at Nashoba Valley Medical Center and passionate critic of the NVMC’s closure, is the only Harvard resident named to the committee.
The working group is co-chaired by Joanne Marqusee, assistant secretary in the Executive Office of Health and Human Services, and Robert Pontbriand, town manager of Ayer. According to Tuesday’s Press release, the committee has already met once, though no date or location was provided. Requests for more details were unanswered as this story was being prepared.
The EOHHS press release did include statements by each of the co-chairs. Pontbriand characterized the inaugural meeting as “a productive first step in addressing the various impacts and challenges to health care in the Nashoba Valley which the closure of the Nashoba Valley Medical Center has created.”
Said Marqusee: “While we understand that the loss of this hospital has been difficult for [Nashoba Valley] towns, we see an opportunity for the working group to develop proposals that have potential to make a real and positive impact.”
As a working group appointed by EOHHS, the Nashoba Valley committee is not subject to the open meeting law. However, “The Nashoba Valley working group will provide opportunities for community engagement as its work progresses,” said the Tuesday announcement.
Nashoba Valley working group members
Hospital leaders
- Tricia Pistone, senior director of external affairs, UMass Memorial Health Health-Alliance Clinton Hospital
- Christine Schuster, RN, MBA, president and CEO, Emerson Health
- Colin McHugh, president and CEO, Southern New Hampshire Health
- John Jurczyk, FACHE, Covenant senior vice president, president of St. Joseph Hospital
- Amy Hoey, RN, president, Tufts Medicine Lowell General Hospital
Other health care providers
- Stephany Godfrey, DO, chief of family medicine at Nashoba Valley Medical Center
- Amjad Husain, MD, chief medical officer, Nashoba Valley Medical Center
- Paul P. Harasimowicz III, MD, chief of surgery, Nashoba Valley Medical Center
- Francis M. Sauvageau, chief executive officer, Taravista and Miravista Behavioral Health Centers
- John A. DeMalia, president and CEO, Community Health Connections.
- Patti Onorato, deputy executive vice chancellor for operations, ForHealth Consulting at UMass Chan Medical School
- William Reidt, regional vice president, Life Care Centers of America
Pre-hospital care (EMS/fire chiefs)
- Timothy Johnston, fire chief, town of Ayer
- Art Cheeks, fire chief, town of Groton
- Robert Sideleau, fire chief, city of Leominster
- Brian Borneman, chief of department, Pepperell Fire
- Steele McCurdy, fire chief, town of Littleton
Community leaders
- Mark Haddad, town manager, town of Groton
- Jason M. Main, director of veterans services, town of Leicester
- Chelsey Patriss, executive director, Health Equity Partnership of North Central Massachusetts
- Tamara Bedard, RN, community health manager/local public health nurse, Nashoba Associated Boards of Health
- Lori A. Richardson, chief executive officer, Aging Services of North Central Massachusetts
Elected officials
- Congresswoman Lori Trahan
- Marian Ryan, district attorney of Middlesex County
- State Sen. John Cronin, Worcester and Middlesex District
- State Sen. James B. Eldridge, Middlesex and Worcester District
- State Sen. Edward J. Kennedy, First Middlesex District
- State Rep. Margaret Scarsdale, First Middlesex District
- State Rep. Danillo A. Sena, 37th Middlesex District
Other
- Audra Sprague, RN, co-chair MNA at Nashoba Valley Medical Center
- Tim Foley, executive vice-president of 1199SEIU
- Gregg Meyer, MD, head of incident command, Massachusetts Department of Public Health