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Speaking on children’s mental health, Dr. Abita Raj, a child and adolescent psychologist with Community Healthlink, said it’s important to keep an open dialogue. 

“Checking in, if you notice something different, talk,” Dr. Raj said. “Talking is so important. Some kids are open and some kids are going to push you away, but the fact that you asked and engaged is so, so important.”

Community Healthlink, an organization within the UMass Memorial Health system that provides mental health services, has been chosen by the City of Worcester to assist a new crisis response model for 911 calls. 

Giving new nurses the first-hand experiences they need is the goal of UMass Memorial Medical Center’s Graduate Residency Program.

Karen Uttaro, UMass Memorial director of education, said, “(Graduate students) are assigned to a particular unit, and they have a whole year to go through the program. The first 13 weeks are really the most intensive part.”

With abortion rights threatened by an imminent Supreme Court ruling, Massachusetts advocates on Friday unveiled a broad agenda to protect and expand reproductive services to accommodate patients from the Bay State and beyond.

The city is working to deal with mental health issues head on using the collective power of several organizations and its task force to reduce stigma and get those who need it help. 

City officials, public health advocates and people with first-hand experience struggling with their mental health said that work is ongoing to end the stigma around mental health at an event Tuesday afternoon outside City Hall. 

Heywood Healthcare and UMass Memorial Health have started the process of forming an affiliation that would bring Heywood under the UMass Memorial umbrella. The two systems, which currently collaborate on a number of programs, have signed a non-binding letter of intent that will allow Heywood Healthcare and UMass Memorial Health to explore affiliation options upon the completion of a review. 

That’s something Dr. Eric Alper, senior vice president, chief clinical informatics officer and chief quality officer at UMass Memorial Health, is keeping a close eye on. Currently, Worcester, Massachusetts-based UMass takes advantage of private health information exchanges, like Epic’s proprietary Care Everywhere platform. 

WORCESTER, Mass. - COVID-19 cases have been on the rise in Central Massachusetts. 

According to Massachusetts Department of Public Health data, the 14-day daily average as of April 28 is 21.8 cases, more than double the average on April 7. Compared to the rest of the state, however, the 14-day daily rate in Worcester County is well below average. From April 14 to April 28, Worcester County reported over 2,500 positive COVID-19 cases.

Heywood Hospital is looking to join the UMass Memorial Health system, a move that would bring the two-hospital organization into the growing Worcester-based health system.

The two health systems signed a letter of intent to conduct due diligence for a deal, a process the groups said could take up to a year. If the pair sign a definitive agreement, the deal would require Health Policy Commission review.