During 2021 the entire Milford Regional team united to face many of the same challenges that have impacted healthcare providers across the country. Patient demand for services was very high due to many factors: providing care that was postponed in 2020, managing ongoing COVID-19 surges, and administering vaccines. While demand for quality healthcare services increased, critical staffing issues in every segment of healthcare in Massachusetts caused a disruption in typical care patterns. Our academic medical centers – a hallmark of the state’s nationally recognized health care – also had serious staffing issues, as have long-term care facilities. This situation created a crucial delay in the transfer of patients out of Milford Regional’s in-patient beds and Emergency Department to our partners for advanced critical care or to nursing homes and rehabilitation sites for longer term care. We, like other community hospitals, have been called upon to help our patients and staff endure this historic challenge.  

Indeed, our team has risen to the call. Over the past year, I have seen more teamwork throughout Milford Regional than ever before. At every level of our organization, from physicians and physician office staff, nurses and technicians to dietary and housekeeping professionals, facility security, human resources, technology experts and hundreds of dedicated community volunteers, everyone has continued to do more than their share to keep our community safe and well.

As the COVID-19 vaccines began to roll out, we established a community vaccination clinic that served more than 6,000 patients. It was an incredible effort by all who responded to meet patient demand on several fronts which was, at times, overwhelming. The health of our staff, too, was paramount to our mission and over 99% of our active employees are now vaccinated.

What’s even more inspiring is that in the face of these unprecedented challenges borne of COVID-19 surges and staffing shortages, Milford Regional has garnered awards and accolades that point to our team’s enduring dedication to quality in every corner of the institution. It is especially notable that Milford Regional Medical Center earned its 7^th consecutive Safety Grade “A” from The Leapfrog Group, a respected national standard-bearer for hospital quality. Often ranked at the very top of states with the best healthcare institutions, Massachusetts is home to 102 hospitals of different sizes. Yet only eight Massachusetts hospitals have achieved seven or more consecutive Leapfrog “A” Safety Grades and Milford Regional is one of them. In addition, The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services  (CMS) awarded Milford Regional a five-star rating for quality and safety.

These national recognitions are a tangible affirmation of our investments made in recent years in the area of quality and our team’s enduring dedication to keeping patients safe. These and other quality scores, which you will read about throughout this year’s Report to the Community, have also positively impacted our reimbursement rates, which is crucial to our financial health.

Given the increased costs, unusual healthcare needs, disruptions in typical care patterns and other factors, we ended FY 2021 with a loss of $13 million from operations. In FY 2020, we experienced a $21 million loss from operations, however we received $16 million in Cares Act relief, which helped to reduce that loss to $5 million. Our team is still actively pursuing additional FY 2021 CARES Act funding through the Massachusetts Hospital Association, based on a matrix of requirements for different funding streams.

As we look to 2022 and beyond, the key premise of our immediate plans continues to be serving our community and getting through the COVID-19 pandemic. We are so fortunate to have a highly regarded medical staff comprised of talented physicians. They are employed at MRPG, committed private practice physicians and those who come to us through our academic medical partners, UMass Memorial, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Boston Children’s Hospital. These partnerships put us in a unique position to successfully meet our objectives going forward. In addition, we are home to highly skilled nurses and dedicated support staff, all of whom have contributed on the frontline during this extraordinary time in history.

At the same time, we continue to work on longer-term goals for Milford Regional. We have actively started a new Facilities Master Plan with our Building Committee to tackle the years-long planning necessary to ensure that we are able to provide the additional capacity needs forecasted as our community grows and evolves. It is this kind of strategic planning that allowed us to expand our Emergency Department and ICU, as well as many other initiatives in the past. We believe it is once again time for visionary thinking and thoughtful planning.

We are also fortunate to have community leadership and oversight through our Milford Regional Board of Trustees and this year we welcome Laura Mann as the first female chair of the Board. Laura, who is a respected attorney, is known for her excellent standing and leadership in the community. Her long-time ambassadorship of Milford Regional, and her willingness to jump in and help during COVID-19, makes her a perfect leader for this critical point in time.

It’s been incredible to see the entire team tackle the challenges of COVID-19 and I am more confident than ever that Milford Regional is up to the challenge of serving our patients and the community with quality and excellence into the future.

Edward J. Kelly
President & CEO
Milford Regional Medical Center

In 2019, just one year before COVID-19 gripped our community, Milford Regional re-committed to ensuring the delivery of high-quality, safe care for every patient through an investment in the Quality Department that raised the bar on not only reaching, but exceeding benchmarks in quality measures. That year, key individuals with recognized expertise and achievements in quality joined the Milford Regional team including Milford Regional’s Vice President for Clinical Transformation and Medical Staff Services/Chief Quality Officer Bert Thurlo-Walsh, MM, RN, CPHQ. As new positions were instituted, including Manager of Accreditation, Nursing Director of Quality and a Healthcare Data Analytics Manager, every member of the Milford Regional team embraced the word STRIVE,a word that would reflect the serious individual and collaborative energy that the team would devote to the institution-wide goal-driven focus on quality.

In FY 2021, while COVID-19 placed unprecedented demands on every member of the Milford Regional team, this dedication to quality care never wavered; it was apparent throughout every department, physician’s office and patient room. When we say, “quality is our foundation,” it is confirmed through local, regional and national recognitions.

One of the Nation’s Safest Hospitals

In the Fall 2021 Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade, Milford Regional received an unprecedented seventh consecutive “A” grade for hospital safety. This top national distinction uses up to 27 measures of safety data to evaluate more than 2700 hospitals across the country under the guidance of a national panel of experts. According to Leapfrog, a recognized national standard-bearer for hospital safety, hospitals that earn an “A” are national leaders in saving lives. Often ranked at the top of states with excellent healthcare institutions, Massachusetts is home to 102 hospitals and only eight of those have earned seven or more consecutive “A” grades for hospital safety. Milford Regional is one of them.

5-Star Rating from The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS)

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) recognized Milford Regional with a 5-Star overall hospital quality star rating in 2021, the highest rating given by this national agency. The CMS hospital quality star rating program uses measures from the following categories to determine an overall star rating: mortality, safety of care, readmission, patient experience, timely & effective care, and efficient use of medical imaging. CMS developed the star rating program to help consumers choose highly rated hospitals based on comparing data on the CMS hospital compare website. Milford Regional was one of 455 hospitals out of 4,586 across the United States to achieve a 5-star rating, and was one of just 12 hospitals to receive 5 stars in Massachusetts.

Milford Regional’s Maternity Center of Distinction

Milford Regional’s Maternity Center was recognized by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Massachusetts with a Blue Distinction® Centers+ for Maternity Care designation, as part of the Blue Distinction Specialty Care program. Racial and ethnic disparities are persistent and widespread across maternal healthcare, primarily driven by socioeconomic status, geographic location, and implicit provider bias. Compared to similarly developed countries such as Canada, Germany, and Australia, the United States has the highest maternal mortality rate (MMR). To help address these gaps in care and to help ensure better health for mothers, The Blue Cross Blue Shield Association enhanced its quality evaluation for Maternity Care. Milford Regional has met the rigorous Blue Distinction Centers+ quality selection criteria for maternity care and we are extremely proud of the dedication to quality that is ever-present in Milford Regional’s Maternity Center.

Cancer Program Earns National Accreditation

The Commission on Cancer (CoC), a quality program of the American College of Surgeons (ACS) has granted three-year accreditation to the cancer program at Milford Regional. To earn voluntary CoC accreditation, a cancer program must meet or exceed the CoC quality care standards, be evaluated every three years through a survey process and maintain levels of excellence in the delivery of comprehensive patient-centered care. As a CoC-accredited cancer center, Milford Regional takes a multidisciplinary approach to treating cancer as a complex group of diseases that requires consultation among surgeons, medical and radiation oncologists, diagnostic radiologists, pathologists and other cancer specialists.

The Breast Center at Milford Regional Earns National Accreditation

The National Accreditation Program for Breast Centers (NAPBC), a quality program of the American College of Surgeons (ACS), granted three-year accreditation to Milford Regional’s Breast Center in 2021. The accreditation is only given to those centers that have committed to provide the highest level of quality breast care and that undergo a rigorous evaluation process and review of their performance.

High Performing Hospital by U.S. News & World Report

Each year U.S. News & World Report ranks more than 5,000 hospitals nationwide and provides “high-performing” distinctions to the top 10% in each of the procedures/categories they evaluate. An overall rating of high performing indicates a hospital was significantly better than the national average in a given procedure or condition. Milford Regional was ranked high performing for treatment in three areas by U.S. News & World Report: heart failure, kidney failure and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

American Heart Association Stroke Gold Plus

Milford Regional has long been recognized for its excellence in treating patients who have suffered from a stroke. The American Heart Association’s Get With the Guidelines®Gold Plus award is considered the most advanced level of recognition to highlight institutions that have consistently complied with the American Heart Association’s Quality Measures when treating patients with stroke. In 2021, Milford Regional also met specific scientific guidelines as a Primary Stroke Center featuring a comprehensive system for rapid diagnosis and treatment of stroke patients admitted to the emergency department.

Patients Rank Us #1

In 2021, MyFM Media, owners of radio stations MyFM101.3 and WMRC 1490, surveyed the region to get a sense of who the trusted resources were in 11 categories including medical services. Over 1200 nominations were received in just two weeks and Milford Regional rose to the top with a gold recognition for Best Hospital. This type of honor shines through as a true reflection of how Milford Regional is serving the community and we are proud to have been recognized in this inaugural Quest for the Best.

While establishing and operating a hospital-based COVID-19 Vaccine Clinic was a primary focus of attention and energy in 2021, serving more than 6,000 members of our community, Milford Regional continued to move other program and service initiatives forward. From Orthopedics to Women’s Health, attention was given to building new services and facilities to better serve patients.

COVID-19 Vaccine Clinic

One of the most important services Milford Regional offered in 2021 was providing a COVID-19 Vaccine Clinic for employees and members of the community. More than 99% of our staff was 100% vaccinated and more than 6,000 members of our community also received their vaccines at Milford Regional before the clinic was closed on May 13, 2021. During that time not only did our staff work tirelessly to protect the community, but 44 community volunteers provided more than 2,500 hours of service at the clinic. Behind the scenes they also assembled more than 2,500 COVID-19 test kits.

New Orthopedic Center of Excellence

Fiscal Year 2021 provided the perfect opportunity to plan and build out a new facility for Milford Regional Orthopedics & Sports Medicine. Due to open at 98 Prospect Street in Milford in early 2022, this new 10,000 square-foot facility will be operated by Milford Regional Physician Group and offer diagnosis, treatment and X-ray services for a wide range of orthopedic concerns and sports injuries. An ambulance entrance will offer additional convenience for those with mobility issues.

Women’s Health & Pelvic Floor Therapy

Milford Regional Rehabilitation and Sports Medicine is now offering a new treatment to women who suffer from dysfunctions of the pelvis and groin area that contribute to bowel, bladder, sexual health and other pain complaints.

Up to one-third of all women experience a problem with their pelvic floor muscles at some point in their life. The Women’s Health and Pelvic Floor Therapy program can treat common conditions, including pelvic floor weakness, pregnancy-related conditions such as sacroiliac joint pain, sciatica, pubic symphysis separation, incontinence, low back pain, pelvic pain and post-partum incontinence, endometriosis, sexual dysfunction and more.

A team of specially-trained therapists offers non-surgical treatment options including behavioral strategies, biofeedback training, manual therapies like visceral and internal/external soft tissue mobilizations, therapeutic exercises for the pelvic floor, posture re-training, lifestyle education and a thorough home exercise program.

Milford Regional’s highly regarded medical staff continues to grow each year, increasing access to leading-edge diagnostics and treatment for patients in our region. While FY 2021 was dominated by COVID-19 concerns, new physicians continued to join Milford Regional to help us bring the very best healthcare to our community. Through Milford Regional Physician Group, private practices and our partnerships with New England’s finest academic medical centers, Milford Regional has become a nexus for excellence in quality care.

New Chief Medical Officer Joins Milford Regional

Peter B. Smulowitz, MD, MPH, joined Milford Regional as Chief Medical Officer in 2021, to replace Leslie Selbovitz, MD who retired after serving as CMO since 2017. Dr. Smulowitz is an experienced emergency medicine physician and proven innovative leader. Dr. Smulowitz earned his bachelor’s degree from Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, in 1998 and graduated from the University of California, Irvine College of Medicine in Irvine, California, in 2003 with a degree in medicine. He performed an emergency medicine residency at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, and earned a Masters of Public Health (Health Policy and Administration) from Harvard School of Public Health in Boston in 2006.

Prior to joining Milford Regional, Dr. Smulowitz held many leadership positions in the Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital system, including Chair of Emergency Medicine at the Needham campus, co-leader of a state-funded program to manage the Plymouth campus’s Complex Patient Population and Integrated Care Initiative, and oversaw a pilot program at the hospital’s Boston campus to redesign the hospital’s response to major adverse events.

Dr. Smulowitz has also held leadership positions outside of his hospital affiliations, including a term as president of the Massachusetts College of Emergency Physicians and was once a candidate for Massachusetts State Senate. In addition, he is an assistant professor of Emergency Medicine at Harvard Medical School and has several research publications and scholarly articles to his credit. Dr. Smulowitz has already shown his leadership skills as the Milford Regional medical staff continues to navigate the challenges of COVID-19 and all of its complexities.

New Milford Regional Medical Center Physicians

Milford Regional Physician Group 2021

Focus on Growth and Innovation

Amidst continuing challenges in the healthcare environment fueled by the coronavirus pandemic, Milford Regional Physician Group (MRPG) enjoyed a year of significant growth and expansion. We opened new buildings in Hopkinton and Franklin; established new primary care and orthopedics practices; and are gearing up for the opening of our new orthopedics and sports medicine site at 98 Prospect Street, Milford. In addition, planning is now underway for a brand new 20,000+ square-foot building in Medway that will house family medicine, pediatrics, women’s health, and urgent care in the next year or two.

Innovation and creativity is crucial as we continue to look at alternative ways to care for our patients and support our employees and providers. Staffing is a priority, as we begin to evaluate external resources to help with tasks such as prescription refills and scanning. In addition, offering positions with flexible hours and on the job training will help to build staff in key areas, while improving patient flow.

Milford Regional Urgent Care has been a huge asset to our community over the past year, as thousands of patients with COVID concerns flock to Franklin, Hopkinton, Milford and Northbridge for guidance, evaluation, treatment and testing. We continue to educate patients about better ways to access healthcare to improve efficiency and avoid long waits. As COVID vaccines were approved and began to roll out for our younger population, we quickly assembled our teams to offer pediatric vaccinations for kids ages 5-11.

Our providers and staff have displayed incredible resilience and dedication throughout the past year. It is due to this steadfast commitment that we are able to provide safe, high quality care to our surrounding community, and enter 2022 with great confidence and optimism.

MRPG Welcomes New Physicians and Advanced Practitioners

MRPG continues to expand access to care throughout our community by recruiting many new providers:             

• Several primary care physicians joined our group this year, including: Alan Jackson, MD, Hopkinton Primary Care; Jonathan Andersen, DO, Family Medicine Associates; Agnieska Buniowska-Popiolek, MD, Franklin Primary Care; Sharon Mullane, MD, Franklin-Wrentham Family Medicine; and John Andrea, DO, Blackstone Valley Family Physicians and Milford Regional Orthopedics & Sports Medicine. 
• Equally successful was our recruitment of primary care nurse practitioners and physician assistants, including:  Marisa Albert, NP, Family Medicine Associates; Lisa Banian, NP, Karen DiCanzio, NP, and Denise Field, PA-C, Franklin-Wrentham Family Medicine; Patrick Hazard, PA-C, Blackstone Valley Family Physicians; and Tess Green, NP, Northbridge Primary Care.
• Many specialists joined us this past year, including: Susan E. Barrett, MD, MPH, John M. Mulroy, MD, and Michael A. Vazquez, MD, Milford Regional Orthopedics & Sports Medicine; Erik Berg, MD, Milford ENT; and Andrew Ferree, MD, Milford Regional Neurology; Michael Newstein, MD, PhD, and Patricia Cristofaro, MD, Milford Regional Infectious Diseases.
• We opened new sites, including 169 West Main Street in Hopkinton and 440 East Central Street in Franklin.
• Our hospitalist program continues to expand, with the addition of: Sudesh Kaul, MD; Kumait Jaroje, MD; Benson Njenga, MD; Terry Huynh, MD (transitioned from per diem to full time); and Jessica Ferreira, NP.
• At Milford Regional Urgent Care, we added Kelly Bianchi, PA-C; Lisa Clemente, NP; Emmalee Kelly, NP; Audra Belliveau, NP; Mandy Page, PA-C; and David Blake, PA-C.
• In our surgical physician assistant program, we added: Kelly Glenn, PA-C.
• Specialty practices added Meredith Lataille, Audiologist, to Milford Ear Nose & Throat; Helder Garcia, PA-C, to Milford Regional Orthopedics; Hannah Nolan, PA-C, to Milford Regional Infectious Diseases; and Ines Kebir, NP, to Milford Regional Endocrinology.

MRPG Awards and Recognition

• We were once again pleased to be named to the Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Physician Group Honor Roll. The annual Honor Roll highlights physician groups that have achieved exceptional results in their approach to disease prevention and the treatment of acute and chronic illness for both adult and pediatric patients.
• MassGeneral Brigham presented MRPG Primary Care Physician Monica Van Campen, MD, with an award for Clinical Excellence in Primary Care for her outstanding leadership, vision, and commitment to providing high quality patient care.
• We were chosen by thousands of local residents for the MyFM Quest for the Best Gold Award for excellence in orthopedics, pediatrics, and urgent care.

MRPG Practice Moves

• Melissa Mahr, MD and Alan Jackson, MD of Hopkinton Primary Care moved to a newly renovated building at 169 West Main Street in Hopkinton.

Milford Regional Physician Group continues to provide high quality care to our surrounding community.  We regularly monitor our performance on measures related to diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, depression, and preventive screening as a gauge of clinical performance, and continuously rank high against national and local benchmarks. Our physicians and their teams make every effort to ensure that patients get the screening they need and manage their care in a way that achieves positive health outcomes.

For the entirety of Fiscal Year 2021, the community benefits focus was on conducting the triennial Community Health Needs Assessment. The timing of this assessment during the midst of a pandemic was fortuitous as it gave us insight into emergent community health needs and allowed Milford Regional to create a three-year strategic implementation plan that was immediately responsive to these issues.

The year-long process kicked off in October, when Milford Regional once again partnered with Holleran Consulting, LLC, to conduct key informant interviews, a community survey and focus groups to identify environmental, economic, social and biological factors impacting the overall health of residents in our service area.

The entire process was conducted in with our community partners, who represent a broad spectrum of agencies that work directly within the 20 towns served by Milford Regional and included educators, public safety workers, health and human service agencies, recovery coaches, and food pantries…all sharing their perspectives that created a strong foundation upon which Milford Regional could build a solid community benefits plan.

Our community benefits programs for the next three years will focus on four priority areas identified in the Community Health Needs Assessment:

• Mental Health and Substance Use
• Health Care/Health Insurance Access
• Improving Health Outcomes in Worcester County
• Food Insecurity and Homelessness

Our Community Benefits Leadership Team is comprised of hospital administration and staff, and the Community Benefits Advisory Committee is a group of dedicated community representatives. The two work together to not only develop but deploy the programming that impacts residents of all ages in our region.

Milford Regional Medical Center, Inc.
2021 Board of Trustees

OFFICERS

Laura A. Mann  Chair
Anthony M. Consigli  Vice Chair
Jeffrey B. Hopkins, MD  Clerk
Gordon A. Lewis  Treasurer
Edward J. Kelly  President and Chief Executive Officer

TRUSTEES Barbara A. Auger; Vascen J. Bogigian; Denise H. Brockhouse; Diana Caragacianu, MD; Richard J. Daly, MD; Shefali Desai; Jamie E. Doucette; Brian J. Earley; Robert L. Kilroy; Linda M. Mancini; William G. Muller, MD and Beverly A. Swymer

TRUSTEE EMERITUS John J. Burns; William G. Burrill and The Honorable Francis J. Larkin

Milford Regional Physician Group
2021 Board of Trustees

OFFICERS

Laura A. Mann  Chair
Anthony M. Consigli  Vice Chair
Jeffrey B. Hopkins, MD  Clerk
Gordon A. Lewis  Treasurer
Edward J. Kelly  President and Chief Executive Officer MRMC
Patrick R. McSweeney, MD  President MRPG

TRUSTEES Barbara A. Auger; Vascen J. Bogigian; Denise H. Brockhouse; Diana Caragacianu, MD; Richard J. Daly, MD; Shefali Desai; Jamie E. Doucette; Brian J. Earley; Robert L. Kilroy; Linda M. Mancini; William G. Muller, MD and Beverly A. Swymer

Milford Regional Healthcare Foundation
2021 Board of Trustees

OFFICERS

Shefali Desai  Chair
Michael G. Carroll  Vice Chair
Bill Fredericks  Clerk

TRUSTEES Mark A. Abate; Vascen J. Bogigian; Christina W. Brabazon; Vanessa E. Burrill; Alberto A. Correia; Robert P. DeVita; Thomas J. Evans, MD; Matthew R. Fisher; Christopher D. Foley; Julie A. Burgey Kehoe; Tony Khoury; Scott Lerner; Kevin W. Lobster; William G. Muller, MD; Jeffrey D. Nutting; John Peters III and Lynn Tokarczyk

This annual report is a publication of the Milford Regional Public Relations, Marketing and Communications Department.

Donna M. Boynton
Interim Manager, Marketing

Tim Jones
Social/Digital Media Coordinator

Glenn Perry Photography
Morin’s Studio
Photography

The McCoy Group
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