Worcester Business Journal

$15 symbolism fight 6 Worcester might join the national push for $15 minimum wage by changing requirements for tax breaks. WBJ >> To Subscribe Central Massachusetts' Source for Business News March 14, 2016 Volume 27 Number 6 www.wbjournal.com $2.00 Renee Mikitarian-Bradley, UMass' senior director for real estate, wouldn't detail where the organization's expansion will take place, but she did say it will focus on patient needs. Nikita Virani (right), CEO of Boston-based educational game developer Wizdy, works with a student at the 2016 MassDiGI game challenge, held at Microsoft New England in Cambridge. WBJ's annual listing of Central Mass. meeting spaces, golf courses and tournaments, tourist attractions and hotels. Meetings Guide & Golf Directory 12 MassDiGI, colleges boosting video games U p on the fourth floor of 20 Franklin St., down several winding hallways and past a floor-to- ceiling window overlooking the Worcester Commons, lies the offices of video game startup Petricore. Inside the office, three recent Becker College gradu- ates in their early 20s furiously type away at their lap- tops, designing their latest game. The space, with its big comfy couch and candy bowl filled to the top, has a few of the staples usually associated with game develop- ment startups in Boston or Cambridge. This kind of environment is not something you see too often in Worcester, but that is something that is likely to change soon. Local startups, colleges and the state's video game industry organization have fostered a vibrant game development culture in Worcester and are working toward accelerating it so more entrepre- neurs from area colleges will stick around after they graduate. BY LAURA FINALDI Worcester Business Journal Staff Writer >> Continued on Page 10 UMass Memorial decentralizing $700-million technological connection to drive UMass Medical community growth BY SAM BONACCI Worcester Business Journal Digital Editor W ith modern technology, patients can text a photo to a doctor for a diagnosis, blood- sugar levels can be monitored directly from a diabetic's meter and an X-ray can be reviewed in real time by an expert miles away. Just a few years ago, this kind of technology-enabled medicine was more science fiction than fact, but these very real technologies are forming the basis of UMass Memorial Health Care's next phase of expansion set to take place out in the community while being rooted in the institution's vast resources through technology. "All new growth is dispersed away from the primary campuses," UMass President and CEO Eric Dickson said. "All the new investments are going to be made out in the community, and the IT systems are going to be the things that connect them to our technicians here." In the coming years, the area's largest employer with 13,400 workers will grow not at large central locations but will extend its network out into the community. This mentality can already be seen with its new urgent care center at Northborough Crossing with six doctors. This focus is about putting care into the community where it is needed and convenient for the patients but is only made possible through recent technological advances that include a new medical records system. Parts unknown Renee Mikitarian-Bradley, UMass' senior director for real estate, was hesitant to detail exactly where these expansions will be undertaken, instead explaining that they will focus on where patients are located and will be driven by the medical group team. These could be community health locations run by the organization, a joint venture or even a new primary care office, she said. "It will be easier for patients to be able to go some- place in their community and get what they need if the doctor who is providing the services has all the infor- >> Continued on Page 11 P H O T O / M A T T V O L P I N I P H O T O / C O U R T E S Y Q&A with Michael J. Ginzberg, new dean of the WPI business school Shop Talk 8

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