Baystate shared the announcement on its website May 28, saying that the Mark A. Keroack, MD Endowed Chair of Medicine will support the work of the chair of the Department of Medicine.
The chair is able to use the fund for capital, education, research or patient care initiatives to support the department, according to the health system. The department includes general medicine and community health, and hospital medicine, as well as various medical specialties.
“Ann and I both trained in internal medicine in the 1980s,” Dr. Keroack said in a news release. “She went on to specialize in cardiology and I in infectious diseases. We both were drawn to medicine’s challenging puzzles and complex care issues. Though we each transitioned to the CEO role, our training and years of practice in the specialties of medicine remains part of the core of who we are. We hope our gift will allow the chair of medicine, the largest clinical department at Baystate Health, to help members of the department develop skills and increase learning for generations to come.”
Sarah Haessler, MD, the current chair of the Department of Medicine, said in the release that she has used funds from the endowed chair to partner with the associate dean of education at UMass Chan Medical School-Baystate for a junior physician leadership development program within the Department of Medicine.
“This program will engage young and emerging physician leaders to prepare them for leadership roles, resulting in skillful execution of clinical programs, improved patient experience, and a mechanism to build the pipeline for physician leaders at Baystate Health,” she added.
Dr. Keroack, who has served as president and CEO of Baystate since 2014, will retire in July.
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