Outstanding Women in Business: Bostek champions Worcester’s vulnerable elderly population

Photo | Matt Wright Kristine Bostek

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By Katherine Hamilton

With a deeply rooted commitment to the Greater Worcester community, Kristine Bostek has been a champion for the region’s most vulnerable elderly population during the coronavirus pandemic.

As vice president of Summit ElderCare at Fallon Health in Worcester, Bostek is tasked with managing a unique program known as PACE, a Program for All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly.

“I’m proud to say that, when COVID first reared its ugly head back in March 2020, we never needed to close our sites,” she said.

Kristine Bostek, Fallon Health

Bostek oversees Summit ElderCare’s five locations in Massachusetts, including Leominster, Lowell, Springfield, Webster, and Grove Street in Worcester, as well as Fallon Health’s PACE programs in New York.

Summit ElderCare became a PACE organization more than 25 years ago, making Massachusetts one of 31 states to provide the program, which is funded by Medicaid and Medicare.

“Summit ElderCare has been successful for a long time, but became much more successful under Kris’s leadership,” said Mary Ritter, senior vice president and chief strategy and government programs officer at Fallon Health, who oversees Bostek and the PACE program, along with Fallon’s Medicare products.

The PACE program offers a unique set of services for people 55+ years old, who clinically qualify for nursing home care, to keep these individuals out of nursing homes. Centers provide physical and speech therapy, primary care physicians, and daytime care for individuals whose caregivers cannot stay with them throughout the day.

“They’re some of our most fragile, medically complex older adults in the community who, without our program, would be living in a nursing home,” Bostek said. “We care for people who are cognitively impaired, so it’s a pretty robust, comprehensive program.”

When the pandemic hit, Bostek was ready to take on the challenge with a profound understanding of the nuances facing this vulnerable population.

“She knows the business intimately,” Ritter said. “She creates very actionable plans and she follows through and makes sure they happen.”

Bostek focused on addressing social isolation, which was negatively impacting the older population as loved ones and caregivers were barred from visiting many healthcare facilities. She deployed staff to individuals’ homes to offer care and ensure patients were not isolated.

Most notably, she spearheaded the creation of a 24/7 infirmary to care for COVID-positive patients while still allowing family members and loved ones to visit. The project involved immense engagement from her team, as well as approval from the state.

“It was a really out-of-the-box idea, but it is unequivocally one of the best things I've ever seen happen at Fallon,” said Ritter.

Since she was 30, Bostek has served on the boards of various local nonprofits. Her first and foremost dedication is to supporting small nonprofits focused on bettering the community.

“I still am able to be involved in an organization that is part of the larger community and is really concerned about making sure that its mission is to improve the lives of the people in the community,” she said of her position at Fallon, which is also a nonprofit.

She is a member of several local boards, including the Boys & Girls Club of Worcester and the Reliant Foundation, as well as the National PACE Association.

With the exception of a few years running UnitedHealth Group’s Westborough location, all of her career and volunteering roles have been in Worcester.

She began her career in disability insurance, first at Hanover Insurance Group, and at Unum Group, then known as Paul Revere Insurance Co., where she climbed to be vice president.

After 10 years in that position, she moved more directly into the healthcare field with C-suite and executive-level positions at UnitedHealth and UHealthSolutions before joining Fallon Health in 2012.

“I've been in leadership a really long time, and certainly I learn something new in every role that I'm in,” she said. “The best part is having a team of people that you work really closely with, and seeing how they're growing professionally and how we're achieving our goals together.”

Summit ElderCare is working with the state to expand to even more locations, Bostek said.