Worcester Business Journal

wbjournal.com | April 17, 2023 | Worcester Business Journal 3 Health care has come a long way in the last century, last decade, and last year. e ultimate goal is an easy system everyone can access to help make their lives better. We're still a long way from that dream, but we get a little closer each time the industry takes two steps forward and one step back. – Brad Kane, editor T hree years ago, I hated going to the doctor. I'm not afraid of the medical establishment, needles, or anything like that. e problem was medical visits were a logistical nightmare. To arrange my annual physical back in 2020, because of the coronavirus pandem- ic and my primary care physician is part of a large national conglomerate, I had to call and wait on hold for more than an hour to schedule one of the few remaining times available. To get a form signed for my in- surance company, I had to call in and drive to the doctor's office a half dozen times. e experience was so annoying I skipped my physical in 2021 and 2022. is year, though, I finally signed up for my doctor office's online system, which enabled me to schedule my appointment with ease, communicate with my provid- er, and even view the test results of my bloodwork (which, I'm happy to report, revealed I got my cholesterol back under control, thanks to a new commitment to a healthy diet, exercise, and weight loss. WooHOO!!) Even getting the insurance form only took one phone call. e downside, though, was the lack of human interaction. I only saw my provider for about 15 minutes, and since then, all interactions have been digital. When my wife does telehealth visits for our children's medical appointments, the screen includes a warning saying digital visits are not as effective as in-person ones. Technology has increased our access to health care, but something has been lost in the transition. is edition's cover story "Diagnosing AI" from Staff Writer Isabel Tehan on page 12 explores a similar conundrum in healthcare technology, namely how artificial intelli- gence can help diagnosticians perform their jobs better but creates its own problems in need of solving, such as bias against mar- ginalized groups and patient preferences to interact with humans. On page 16 in the story "Bankrupting the system", Tehan details another issue stemming from the pandemic: nurse staff- ing shortages. e cost of expensive travel nurses to fill staff positions has tripled in the last year across Massachusetts, as hospitals search for ways to get more regular staff. ey expect to resolve the problem in a year, but it's causing a significant strain. Making health care easier W I N T H I S I S S U E Editor, Brad Kane, bkane@wbjournal.com Staff Writers Timothy Doyle tdoyle@wbjournal.com (Real estate, higher education) Kevin Koczwara kkoczwara@wbjournal.com (Manufacturing, energy & environment) Isabel Tehan, itehan@wbjournal.com (Health care, diversity & inclusion) Contributors Giselle Rivera-Flores, Laura Finaldi, Monica Benevides, Alan Earls, Susan Shalhoub, Livia Gershon Photgraphers Matt Wright, Edd Cote Research Director, Stephanie Meagher, smeagher@nebusinessmedia.com Research Assistant, Heide Martin, hmartin@nebusinessmedia.com Production Director, Kira Beaudoin, kbeaudoin@wbjournal.com Art Director, Mitchell Hayes, mhayes@wbjournal.com Senior Accounts Manager Christine Juetten, cjuetten@wbjournal.com Senior Special Accounts Manager Mary Lynn Bosiak, mlbosiak@wbjournal.com Senior Account Executive Yasmin Nasrullah, ynasrullah@wbjournal.com Marketing & Events Manager Kris Prosser, kprosser@wbjournal.com Human Resources Manager, Tracy Rodwill, trodwill@nebusinessmedia.com Accounting Manager, Sara Ward, sward@nebusinessmedia.com Accounting Assistant, Rae Rogers, rrogers@nebusinessmedia.com Account Receivable Specialist, Patty Harris, pharris@ nebusinessmedia.com Audience Development Manager, Leah Allen, lallen@nebusinessmedia.com Business Office Assistant, Nicole Dunn, ndunn@nebusinessmedia.com Publisher, CEO, Peter Stanton pstanton@nebusinessmedia.com Associate Publisher, Mark Murray mmurray@wbjournal.com President, Tom Curtin tcurtin@hartfordbusinessjournal.com Worcester Business Journal (ISSN#1063-6595) is published bi-weekly, 24x per year, including 4 special issues in May, September, October, and December by New England Business Media. 172 Shrewsbury St., Worcester, MA 01604. Periodicals postage paid at Worcester, MA. Copyright 2023. All rights reserved. Postmaster: Please send address changes to: Worcester Business Journal, PO Box 330, Congers, NY 10920-9894. Subscriptions: Annual subscriptions are available for $84.00. For more information, please email circulation@wbjournal.com or contact our circulation department at 845-267-3008. Advertising: For advertising information, please call Mark Murray at 508-755-8004 ext. 227. Fax: 508-755-8860. Worcester Business Journal accepts no responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts or materials and in general does not return them to the sender. Worcester Business Journal 172 Shrewsbury Street, Worcester, MA 01604 508-755-8004 tel. • 508-755-8860 fax www.wbjournal.com Worcester Business Journal WBJ A division of: Take your business to the next level. #ICBusinessBanking | Insured by NCUA There's no loan too big or too small. TA B L E O F C O N T E N T S 8 Powering student innovation A trio of Worcester undergraduates have developed a company to aid Indonesian fish farmers, with the help of WPI and Clark entrepreneurship programs. 19 10 Things I know about … Long-term care planning for small business owners Advice columnist Christine Boutin, an attorney at Fletcher Tilton, details the ways business owners can prepare to enter nursing homes without losing all their assets. 4 Central Mass. In Brief 12 Focus on Health care 18 The List: NIH grant recipients 19 Know How 20 Movers & Shakers 21 Opinion 22 Shop Talk: Footprints Floors CORRECTIONS: In the April 3 feature story entitled "Wirefab transformed itself to drive record profits" the article incorrectly stated employee Chris Bousbouras threatened to quit the company in 2019. The year was 2021. In addition, a fact box in the same article incorrectly said Wirefab had a fire on Oct. 17, 1987. The fire was Oct. 16, 1987.

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