Health

HEALTH • September 21, 2015 7 Clinton Hospital | HealthAlliance Hospital | Marlborough Hospital | UMass Memorial Medical Center At UMass Memorial Health Care, you'll find hundreds of caring, compassionate and skilled adult and pediatric primary care physicians across Central Massachusetts. And because our doctors are part of the region's premier health care system, access to a wide range of specialty care and our nationally recognized academic medical center is only a referral away. To find a UMass Memorial primary care physician near you, call 855-UMASS-MD (855-862-7763). I WANT IT ALL I want convenience I want compassion I want world-class care health insurance provider shuts down its Fallon Total Care program this September. A spokeswoman for Fallon confirmed that it had informed state labor officials in a fil- ing that it would cut 45 jobs. The exact number of jobs that will be lost will not be known until the program officially ends, as the company works to find other positions for affected employees, spokeswoman Carrie Wattu said. "We're providing additional support for those employ- ees who need help transitioning to other internal and external posi- tions," she said. Fallon announced in June that it would end Total Care, which has served members eligible for both Medicaid and Medicare since October 2013. WORCESTER — Two CareWell Urgent Care centers in Worcester, affiliated with UMass Memorial Health Care, have opened, joining a growing sector of the health care industry in Central Massachusetts. CareWell, based in Quincy, and UMass Memorial announced their affiliation for three urgent care cen- ters. A third is expected to open in Northborough in October. Additional affiliated sites throughout Central Massachusetts will open over the next 12 to 18 months, both organizations said. The Worcester sites are at 500 Lincoln St. and 348 Greenwood St. CareWell clinics will be able to refer patients to UMass Memorial specialists and primary care physicians when necessary, according to a statement from the company. WORCESTER — The state's Health Policy Commission has signed off on UMass Memorial Medical Center's plan to buy a minority stake in Quest Diagnostics' Massachusetts subsid- iary. Matthew Kitsos, a spokesman for the commission, said it has decid- ed to not pursue a cost and market review of the medical center's plan to buy a nearly 19-percent ownership share in the subsidiary, Quest Diagnostics Massachusetts LLC. That essentially clears the way for the Worcester-based hospital, part of UMass Memorial Health Care, to make the deal, he said. Documents filed with the commission in May said the deal would allow the medical center to nominate one of the subsid- iary's five directors. The Quest sub- sidiary conducts "substantially all" of the clinical diagnostics testing for the hospital, according to the document filed by UMass Memorial. GARDNER — OmniVision Technologies has formed a partner- ship with optical instruments maker Precision Optics Corp. of Gardner and Tokyo-based Fujikura to devel- op a tiny camera module for medical applications. OmniVision, based in California, is a developer of advanced digital imaging solutions. The company said it is teaming with Precision Optics and Fujikura to develop the 160K CMOS imaging sensor (CIS) module. The collabora- tion will work on developing an "ultra-small camera module with best image quality, low power con- sumption and ease of integration for reusable endoscopes and other med- ical applications," the statement from OmniVision said. SOUTHBOROUGH — Clinical research company Veristat of Southborough has opened a new office in the San Francisco Bay Area that will house the company's West Coast operation. Veristat, which moved its headquarters from Holliston to Southborough in July, said the new office, in San Bruno, Calif., will provide a full range of clinical services to clients that are developing therapies in all areas of biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, diagnostics and medical devices. Veristat's service offerings include biostatistics, statistical program- ming, medical writing, clinical mon- itoring and data management. WORCESTER — More than 2,200 unionized nurses at two UMass Memorial Medical Center campuses voted to ratify one-year contracts after negotiations that the union called "relatively smooth." The Massachusetts Nurses Association announced the votes June 15. It said the approval of the contracts for the 2,214 member nurses at the University and Memorial campuses in Worcester came after "just a handful" of negotiating sessions. That came in stark contrast to con- tract negotiations two years earlier, when nurses voted to stage a one- day strike amid contentious talks. Just before the planned strike, the hospital and the union agreed to a contract. This latest settlement fol- lowed two years of contentious talks between the nurses and the medical center's administration.

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