Worcester Business Journal

6 Worcester Business Journal | April 4, 2022 | wbjournal.com Federal enhancement With nearly $1M in new federal funding, CENTRO seeks to improve its reach by making more efficient use of limited time and resources BY SARAH CONNELL SANDERS Special to WBJ W ith an extra $1 million in hand, thanks to federal funding, Worcester nonprofit CENTRO is hoping to expand its reach further into the region's immigrant and underserved communities, on the whole and in one area in particular: health care. "For a very long time, we have been trying to chug along with the resources we have and with our limited infrastructure in terms of electronic health records," said Juan Gomez, CENTRO president and CEO. e funding came from the $1.5-trillion appropriations bill passed by Congress in March, and CENTRO's slice was part of nearly $8 million that Congressman James McGovern (D-Worcester), chairman of the House Rules Committee, advocated for to help workforce development, arts and culture, and community development. CENTRO intends to use the funding for a telehealth and electronic health records project as well as the purchase of new equipment. "For an organization of our size, an effective electronic health record system can be used to store information about clients and persons served to be able to produce data about what impact we're having in the lives of those individuals and justify why we serve them," said Gomez. Gomez hopes the upgrade will result in more direct communication with hospitals and clinics. Efficiency is paramount to CENTRO's telehealth and electronic health records project. More than anything, the funds will allow the Worcester nonprofit to maximize its staff 's time, Gomez said. "Our current electronic health records are very cumbersome and difficult to navigate," Gomez said. "Right now, instead of spending more time in the field making sure we are providing effective services, we are limited in the number of individuals we can serve because we are so busy inputting data." Serving the underserved CENTRO was founded in 1977 by Miguel Bafaro, whom Gomez lovingly CENTRO CEO Juan Gomez talks planning with strategic initiative consultant Scott Dennett. PHOTOS/EDD COTE C E N T R O Founded: 1977 Families currently served: 8,700+ Massachusetts cities and towns reached: 52 Annual number of individual client contact services: 24,000+ Founding members: Miguel Bafaro, Luis Perez, Jacinto Arroyo, Lidia Reyes, Francisco Ojeda, Jose Perez, Juan Mirillo, and Armando Santiago Primary programs & services: Food pantry, adult foster care, family support services, shared living, children & family services, children's behavioral health initiative, community support services, and Latino elder program

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