Addressing the Needs of Under-served Communities
Baystate Health and the University of Massachusetts Medical School partnered in 2015 to establish a regional campus in Springfield—University of Massachusetts Medical School-Baystate—with the aim of improving the health and well-being of our medically under-served rural and urban communities.
The partners, both leaders in patient care, medical education, and clinical research, are collaborating on efforts to increase access to high-quality, high-value health care by:
- Easing the critical physician shortage in western Massachusetts
- Delivering health care more equitably and efficiently
Population-based Urban and Rural Community Health Track
Creating a Pipeline of Physicians Prepared—and More Likely—to Practice Locally
By offering an additional track for UMass medical students, the innovative PURCH Track, the UMMS-Baystate campus:
- Increases Massachusetts Students' Access to Affordable Medical Education
Physicians often practice where they train. The PURCH Track allows UMMS, one of the lower-cost medical schools in the nation, to increase incoming class size by 25 students—producing an additional 100 locally-trained medical students after the first four years.
- Increases the Number of Physicians Trained in Urban and Rural Healthcare
Medical students in the PURCH Track learn about the health needs of community members living in rural and urban areas of western Massachusetts, as well as the complex population-level factors contributing to health disparities.
Establishing Research Centers
Focusing on Conducting—and Applying—Research on Effective, Efficient Healthcare
The UMMS-Baystate campus created two new research centers to:
- Transform the Delivery of Healthcare Services
Institute for Healthcare Delivery and Population Science develops and evaluates innovative strategies to improve population health, reduce health disparities, and make health care better integrated.
- Expand Patients' Access to Cutting-edge Treatments
The Center for Clinical and Translational Investigation increases clinical trials available locally for the western Massachusetts community. Research findings are used to advance the delivery of the latest proven therapies.