4 HEALTH • Spring 2017
C E N T R A L M A S S A C H U S E T T S
Worcester Business Journal Editor
Brad Kane, bkane@wbjournal.com
HEALTH Editor
Emily Micucci, emicucci@wbjournal.com
Digital Editor, Grant Welker,
gwelker@wbjournal.com
Managing Editor
Laura Finaldi
Contributors
Edd Cote, Nathan Fiske, Livia Gershon,
Susan Shalhoub
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
Matt Majikas, mmajikas@wbjournal.com
Custom Publishing Project Manager
Christine Juetten, cjuetten@wbjournal.com
Senior Special Accounts Manager
Mary Lynn Bosiak, mlbosiak@wbjournal.com
Marketing & Events Manager
Kris Prosser, kprosser@wbjournal.com
Chief Operating Officer, Mary Rogers,
mrogers@nebusinessmedia.com
Accounting Manager, Valerie Clark,
vclark@nebusinessmedia.com
Accounting Assistant, Rae Rogers,
rrogers@nebusinessmedia.com
Collections Manager, Raki Zwiebel,
rzwiebel@nebusinessmedia.com
Human Resources, Kim Vautour,
kvautour@nebusinessmedia.com
President, Joseph Zwiebel,
jzwiebel@nebusinessmedia.com
Publisher, CEO, Peter Stanton,
pstanton@nebusinessmedia.com
Associate Publisher, Mark Murray,
mmurray@wbjournal.com
Postmaster: Please send address changes to:
New England Business Media
48 Free St. Suite 109
Portland, ME 04101
Tel: 508-755-8004
Email: circulation@nebusinessmedia.com
To reach us:
Visit www.WBJournal.com
Email: editorial@wbjournal.com
Call: 508-755-8004 ext. 227
A division of:
HEALTH
{ From The Editor }
S
pring is a time of renewal, and this spring, I'm excited to unveil Central
Massachusetts Health in its new form.
The magazine, now in its third year, maintains its focus on regional
healthcare news for consumers and the industry, and retains much of the
original format, but we've freshened it up, trading some original features with new
content and making regular items, such as Newsworthy and The Pulse, more
compact and visually compelling.
Specifically, we will now feature a stand-alone photo of new local healthcare
technology, which is an opportunity to highlight cutting-edge technology and
services in our region. Additionally, in every issue we will now profile one the region's acute-care hospi-
tals, providing a look at the size, scope of services and financial health of these vital institutions.
Another recent change to Central Massachusetts Health is the addition of Laura Finaldi as managing
editor. Finaldi has written for the magazine since she joined the Worcester Business Journal staff in 2015,
but her recent elevation to managing editor makes her an integral part of the planning and production
process as well. Her contributions have been a welcome boost.
Spring topics
This issue, we focus on the opioid addiction crisis, a topic that organizations beyond the healthcare
industry have been forced to confront, because of the severity of the epidemic. As Finaldi's Page 14 fea-
ture shows, Massachusetts is one the hardest-hit U.S. states in terms of deaths related to opioid use, but
her story also presents a hopeful look at how safer drugs can help people quit opioids and stay off them.
We also focus on ophthalmology, an area of medicine that doesn't always make headlines but one
that a local biotechnology company has zeroed in on for several years as a frontier for stem cell treat-
ment. Contributing writer Livia Gershon writes about how Astellas Institute for Regenerative Medicine
has entered a new phase, with greater potential for treating blindness and other conditions, after a recent
acquisition by a Japanese company.
Gershon also gives us a feel for the debate on physician-assisted death, a controversial topic that's
likely to be debated in the state Legislature again soon. Find out what healthcare providers, and a patient,
had to say, on Page 20.
Meanwhile, there's a healthy debate brewing among dentists and lawmakers on how to solve
shortages in dental care in Massachusetts. All parties agree that a portion of the population is
underserved, but their differences are examined in my feature story on Page 18.
As we embark on a new year of Central Massachusetts Health content, I'd like to thank our readers,
who have been enthusiastic from the start. I hope you'll continue to look to us first for Central
Massachusetts healthcare news.
- Emily Micucci, HEALTH editor
A fresh take
Central Massachusetts HEALTH is published 4
times a year by New Engand Business Media LLC.
