Health

6 HEALTH • June 15, 2015 New England Regional Headache Center offers comprehensive neurological evaluation and treatment of migraine and other headaches by a multi-disciplinary team of dedicated professionals. We also provide nerve blocks, Botox treatment and infusion therapy. Herbert Markley MD Carolyn Benson APRN, BC Shivang Joshi MD, RPh www.nerhc.org For more information or to schedule an appointment contact us at 508.890.5633 85 Prescott St. Suite 101 Worcester, MA 01605 New England Regional Headache Center knee surgery. WORCESTER — UMass Memorial Health Care will open several urgent care centers in Central Massachusetts this year, which will help ease pressure on the health care system's emergency rooms. The Worcester-based system, the region's largest health care provider, announced its plans after a Quincy- based urgent care business, CareWell Urgent Care, announced plans to expand into Worcester. UMass Memorial doesn't view CareWell strictly as a competitor; Dickson said the health care system will collabo- rate with CareWell, the state's largest operator of urgent care services, "to identify synergies" between the orga- nizations. WESTBOROUGH — A study com- missioned by eClinicalWorks of Westborough finds strong use and acceptance of technology by patients to communicate with their doctors about medical issues. According to the results of an online survey, com- missioned by eClinicalWorks and conducted online by Harris Poll of more than 2,000 U.S. adults, 84 per- cent of people say their doctors' offices have patient portals. Perhaps more intriguing is a broader use among adults age 55 and up. The study found that 61 percent of that group are more likely to access their health information through online portals than adults age 18 to 54. The study found only 45 percent of that demographic group more likely to use portals. MARLBOROUGH — Oxford Immunotec of Marlborough has developed a laboratory test that measures a patient's immunity to cytomegalovirus (CMV), a herpes virus. The medical diagnostics com- pany — which has dual headquarters in Marlborough and England — said in a statement that its T-SPOT.CMV test is available in the U.S. sooner than expected, although approvals are pending in California, Florida and New York. It's a laboratory developed test, which means it's designed, manufactured and used within a single laboratory. The test evaluates T cell response to CMV- specific antigens, and will be per- formed at Oxford Diagnostic Laboratories in Memphis. WORCESTER — St. Vincent Hospital is reviewing an application from a group of more than 200 tech- nicians at the hospital to unionize. The employees have applied to the Boston bureau of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to join Teamsters Local 170 in Worcester. Teresa Prego, chief marketing execu- tive at the Worcester hospital, said in an email that the hospital has received the application and is reviewing it. Michael P. Hogan, sec- retary-treasurer and principal officer of the Teamsters Local 170, said in a telephone interview that about 225 hospital technicians are seeking to unionize. The main issues, according to the technicians, are unsafe staffing levels, and a lack of respect shown to workers at the hospital who are not unionized. MCPHS University has branched into a new area of study after acquir- ing the New England School of Acupuncture (NESA) in Newton, it announced this month. Under the deal, NESA will retain its name but fall under the MCPHS umbrella after a formal process is completed. For now, MCPHS — formerly Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences — has taken over by becoming the sole member of the NESA Corp. The Newton campus will also be maintained for the foreseeable future, a statement from MCPHS said. As a result of the acquisition, MCPHS, which has a campus in downtown Worcester, will add two degree programs to its cur- rent list of 65, according to Charles F. Monahan Jr., president of MCPHS. Saying the past process of licensing marijuana dispensaries was dys- functional, Public Health Commissioner Monica Bharel announced it would be "aggressively revamped," describing a "confusing, overly lengthy application process." Bharel said the Department of Public Health would scrap the multi- stage procurement process used over the past two years and would begin licensing dispensaries on an ongoing basis, similar to how pharmacies are { Health Care Briefs } Continued from Page 5

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