Community Outlook 2021: Baystate Noble to keep health care local

Feb. 22, 2021 | Dennis Hackett
dhackett@thereminder.com

WESTFIELD – After joining the Baystate Health network, Baystate Noble Hospital is focusing on in-house expansions and access to better care for chronic illnesses locally.

Baystate Noble president Ron Bryant said the mission at the hospital is to continue to provide greater local care.

“I think Baystate Noble is going to be an organization that provides the care the community needs. We certainly want to manage the population from a chronic disease standpoint to keep patients healthier. If we manage those chronic illnesses, we’ll have a healthier community. We’re keeping our care local and managing everything locally,” he said.

At this point, Bryant said there are no further cuts planned for the Westfield hospital.

“There are no additional cuts for Baystate Noble at this time. As with any hospital, you wish you had a crystal ball to predict where healthcare was going and we do the best we possibly can to adapt to those changes,” he said.

Since Baystate Health took over Noble Hospital, Bryant said there has been a huge expansion of services they provide along with joining the Baystate Health network.

“If you look at Baystate Noble over the last ten years, especially over the last five years since we affiliated with Baystate Health, we have services that didn’t exist prior to Baystate Health taking over,” he said.

Bryant said some of the enhanced services include expanding primary and specialty care services.

“We’ve enhanced our primary care services with our Feeding Hills practice and with our North Westfield practice, we’ve enhanced our specialty services, with our women’s health clinics, with our OBGYN wellness clinic, with our gastroenterology services, where we’ve more than doubled our colonoscopy screenings, imaging is doing better than it has in a long time,” he said. “Those services that we see as a large part of keeping care local have really expanded, so we’re very proud of that.”

By joining Baystate Health, Bryant said it provides patients a seamless transition of care across Western Massachusetts.

“I think to provide the services in the community is why we affiliated with Baystate Health, to build a bridge to the tertiary care center. When they walk through the doors of Baystate Noble Hospital our goal is that they are walking through the doors of Baystate Health so there is a seamless transition of care,” he said.

Going into 2021, Bryant said the current goal is to expand services on the hospital’s campus.

“If I look into the immediate future into 2021, the expansions of the services for Baystate Noble Hospital will remain on the campus they are currently on. Expanding services on the outpatient side and our emergency department side is about bringing the necessary physicians to the community,” he said.

Along with providing additional services through Baystate Noble Hospital, Bryant said the new hospital in Holyoke will help provide greater health care to Western Massachusetts.

“I think what that hospital will do for Baystate Noble’s primary service area in Greater Westfield and all of Western Massachusetts, will provide greater care for the behavioral health patients that need inpatient psychiatric care. So, I think what we’re doing for the region is a good thing,” he said.

Bryant said the new Baystate Health site in Holyoke will be complete in around two and a half years.

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