2024 Power 100: Dr. Eric Dickson

A man wearing a blue suit with a purple tie

Photo | MATT WRIGHT Dr. Eric Dickson, president & CEO at UMass Memorial Health

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Dr. Eric Dickson Title President & CEO Company UMass Memorial Health, in Worcester Employees 17,587 Residence Princeton Colleges Merrimack College, UMass Chan Medical School, Harvard University Read all the Power 100 profiles here
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Since 2013, Dr. Eric Dickson has led the largest employer in Central Mass., a multi-hospital healthcare provider with more than $3 billion in annual revenues, all while being a thought leader, advocate, and sought-after speaker for the entire industry.

The nonprofit boasts more than 1,000 licensed beds in four hospitals among 10 campuses, 70 office-based community practices, and six urgent care centers. While employing 1,700 physicians, UMass Memorial partners with the UMass Chan Medical School to train 650 residents and fellows annually.

The past 12 months have been full of ups and downs for Dickson and UMass Memorial, while he navigated the turmoil in the healthcare industry. The system was forced to shut down three programs from its behavioral health division Community Healthlink following a state inspection, and the division president stepped down. Two of those programs have yet to be reopened.

In September, UMass Memorial shut down the birthing center at its HealthAlliance hospital in Leominster, earning the ire of local and state officials. While Dickson said the decision was purely clinical as the number of births in the service area declined, UMass Memorial had to work with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health to ensure women and newborns in the region had proper access to care.

On the flip side, Dickson and UMass Memorial came to the rescue of Milford Regional Medical Center, as that independent hospital system was struggling financially in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. In January, the two healthcare providers reached an agreement for Milford to become part of the UMass Memorial system. UMass Memorial soon may welcome Heywood Healthcare in Gardner and Athol into the fold, as the prospect of a merger has been discussed as Heywood makes its way through bankruptcy.

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CORRECTION: A previous version of this story incorrectly said UMass Memorial's decision to close the Leominster birthing center was a financial one. In fact, the hospital system said the decision was a clinical one, as the number of births in the region is declining.