Baystate Health has named Dr. Yvonne Cheung has been named associate chief medical officer and associate chief quality officer for Baystate Medical Center. She will join Baystate in February 2024.
Cheung will provide leadership for quality and patient safety programs, focusing efforts on processes that improve outcomes in quality, safety and value of care. She will also work with members of senior management and physician leaders to design and implement operational strategies and tactics to improve patient outcomes and safety.
With a clinical background in anesthesiology, Cheung completed quality and safety and medical education fellowships at Harvard Medical School. She has held the positions of medical director of quality and safety, chief quality and safety officer and vice president of quality and safety at Mount Auburn Hospital in Cambridge.
Accolades received under her leadership at Mount Auburn Hospital include an ‘A’ grade from Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grades, awards for excellence from U.S. News and World Report and Healthgrades and a CMS 5-star rating for quality, placing Mount Auburn among the top 15% of hospitals nationwide.
Most recently, she served as associate chief medical officer and vice President for quality and safety at Newton Wellesley Hospital in Newton.
Cheung earned her MD from Columbia University, MPH from Harvard School of Public Health, and MBA from University of Massachusetts, Isenberg School of Management.
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Dr. Barry Sarvet, chair of the Department of Psychiatry at Baystate Health, has been named the inaugural Harold Grinspoon Endowed Chair of Psychiatry. This endowed chair position was made possible by a donation by Grinspoon to Baystate Health Foundation.
Grinspoon, the founder of a number of foundations and supporter of variety of philanthropic causes, is dedicated to ensuring resources are available to meet the psychiatry needs of the residents of western Massachusetts, particularly in light of the increased demand for behavioral health providers for children in young adults following the COVID-19 pandemic.
Proceeds from this endowed gift will support this role in perpetuity. Each year, the chair can choose the areas they feel will most benefit from an infusion of financial support.
Sarvet intends to start with investments in clinical education, recruitment, and professional development of existing clinical staff. He also plans to utilize proceeds from the endowment to continue advancing models of collaboration between mental health providers and other helping professionals, including medical and pediatric colleagues, teachers, and community health workers.
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Shatz, Schwartz and Fentin P.C., a law firm serving western and central Massachusetts and northern Connecticut, today announced the addition of attorney Brett Smith, of East Longmeadow, to its team of lawyers.
Smith concentrates his practice on commercial finance and real estate, business organizations and planning, and land use regulation. He earned his Bachelor of Science degree in finance from Bentley University in 2019, and his Juris Doctor from Western New England University School of Law in 2023. He previously served as a legal intern at New Mexico Local Government Law LLC in Albuquerque.
In 2022, Smith received the CALI Excellence for the Future Award in corporate finance law. He co-founded and served as treasurer of the Sports and Entertainment Law Association at Western New England University School of Law.
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The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art lauded its outgoing executive director Alexandra Kennedy at an event that was held on Nov. 4. Based on the theme, “To New Heights,” the event was a thank you for donors who contributed to a special campaign to recognize Kennedy for 15 years of leadership and an introduction to her successor Jennifer Schantz. The Carle surprised Kennedy that night with $240,500 raised for three institutional priorities and announced gifts of 47 artworks donated to the museum’s permanent collection, all in her honor.
The funds raised in Kennedy’s honor by more than 150 donors will help the museum grow more inclusive through staff development and public programs; will support collections care for the 9,000 pieces in the permanent collection; and will provide free access to the museum through a special program which welcomes visitors regardless of ability to pay. These priorities were named by Kennedy when asked what legacy she would like to leave.
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USDA Forest Service Chief Randy Moore announced the appointment of Tony Dixon as regional forester for the Eastern Region. Dixon will oversee management of more than 12 million acres of the National Forest System lands in the Northeast and Midwest.
Dixon is currently serving as the deputy chief for business operations. Dixon launched his career as a cooperative education student on the Routt National Forest in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. He has served in a variety of positions and geographical locations. He earned a bachelor’s degree in marketing and forestry from Alabama A&M University and a master’s degree in administration from Central Michigan University.
Dixon will begin the position in January and will succeed Gina Owens, who retires on Dec. 29.
