Dr. Mike Hirsh is a man of many titles. Director of Injury Free Worcester, director of the pediatric trauma program at UMass Memorial and medical director for Worcester’s Division of Public Health are just a few under his belt. As someone who has devoted countless hours to public health, Hirsh now spends a portion of his time on the front end of health. He spoke with us recently about the importance of prevention, the growing popularity of vaping and his favorite hospital TV dramas.

In 1998, Dr. Louis Messina was a vascular surgeon at the University of California, San Francisco when he performed a bypass on 3-year-old Katy Drennan, who suffered from a rare aortic condition.

Eighteen years later, and 3,000 miles away, the two reunited for a new bypass.

A young woman from California had a heartwarming reunion with the doctor who operated on her almost 20 years ago.

When Katy Drennan was 3 years old, she was diagnosed with a rare aortic disease and underwent surgery at a California hospital with Dr. Louis Messina.

Messina is now a division chief at UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester.

Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito was joined by law enforcement, highway safety advocates and a trauma surgeon Tuesday in Worcester as she launched the administration’s summer roadway safety campaigns focused on teen driving, and distracted or impaired driving.

UMass Memorial Health Care said Friday that it reached a tentative agreement with the Massachusetts Nurses Association following expedited negotiations, reaching what it says is the earliest settlement in recent history.

A team-based approach to primary care isn't a new concept, said Dr. David Polakoff, chief medical officer and associate dean of UMass Medical School's Commonwealth Medicine Division. It was central to some early managed care models, and has been a part of primary care, pediatrics and geriatrics for a long time.

Ken Manning's head is held up by two metal rods, four plates, and 17 screws in his neck. 

Since falling off a frame at a carpentry job in the early 2000s, he has had four surgeries, leaving his tanned neck covered in a spiderweb of pale scars and a sewn-together seam that runs from his shoulders to the base of his skull. 

The pain is still so bad that he sometimes "sees stars" or passes out. To cope with it, he has been prescribed opioid pain medication for more than a decade.

NECN's Emmy Award-winning anchor Latoyia Edwards wanted to bring a positive note to how women feel about their health, their lives and their community.

So as the Saturday morning's self-described "personal espresso" and "Energizer bunny" to more than 160 women gathered at University of Massachusetts Medical School for the Multicultural Women's Health Summit, she demonstrated with an audience member how shifting music from a slow, soulful tune to the driving beat of "Blurred Lines" and "Happy" can transform how we approach our day.

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The Orlando terrorist shootings this week have reignited the debate over whether blood collection centers should block donations from those who have had sexual contact with gay men.

Locally, collection centers in Worcester say they continue to follow federal guidelines that say both men and women cannot donate if they have had intercourse in the last 12 months with men who have had gay sex.