Daily News

Proposals Sought to Assist Hospital Coalition

SPRINGFIELD — The Coalition of Western Massachusetts Hospitals has issued a request for proposals to select an organization to assist the coalition in its implementation of a regional strategy to address mental-health and substance-abuse disorders.

Specifically, the selected organization will serve as the fiscal agent, provide administrative staff support, and facilitate project development and implementation. The coalition will serve as the decision-making body.

Formed in 2012 to share resources and work in partnership to identify priority community health needs through regional health-needs assessments, the coalition is a partnership between eight hospitals — Baystate Medical Center, Baystate Franklin Medical Center, Baystate Mary Lane Hospital, Baystate Wing Hospital, Cooley Dickinson Hospital, Holyoke Medical Center, Mercy Medical Center, and Shriners Hospital for Children — and Health New England, a local health insurer whose service area covers the four counties of Western Mass.

Following feedback from key community stakeholders during the community health-needs assessment process, the coalition has taken its unique collaboration to the next level by identifying a shared health priority to address in partnership across the region.

For a copy of the request for proposal, interested parties may contact Annamarie Golden at [email protected]. The Coalition is accepting proposals and qualification statements from interested vendors until 3 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 31. All proposals should be electronically submitted to Golden, who is receiving on behalf of the coalition.