Kathleen Scoble Joins Baystate Health Board of Trustees
CHICOPEE — Kathleen Scoble, dean of the Elms College School of Nursing, has become the first nurse to serve on the board of trustees of Baystate Health.
Chair of the Division of Nursing at Elms College since 2003, Scoble led the program’s development from a traditional baccalaureate nursing program into a school of nursing which offers several educational pathways for advancing the education of RNs, including master of science and doctor of nursing practice degrees. Baystate Health is the largest regional employer in Western Mass., and one of the largest health systems in New England.
“Nurses are the largest part of our workforce, and they essentially define the experience of care for patients,” said Baystate Health CEO Dr. Mark Keroack. “Someone with Dr. Scoble’s qualifications is who I had in mind when I advocated for a nurse leader on the board. We do so many programs with Elms that this is a logical pairing.”
Added Scoble, “I am very honored to be the first nurse appointed to the Baystate Health board of trustees, and am confident that my experience as both a chief nurse executive and a leader in higher education — as well as the strong relationship that Elms College has enjoyed with Baystate — will assist me in this endeavor.”
She added that she has been impressed with how Baystate trustees, executives, senior managers, and medical staff leaders work and collaborate to achieve the health system’s goals. “I could not be more enthusiastic about the opportunity and responsibility I have as I serve in this very important position.”
Scoble, who has more than three decades of experience in academic, administrative, and consultant roles, has been recognized for her leadership in professional nursing both nationally and abroad. She currently serves as past president of the Mass. Assoc. of Colleges of Nursing and co-chairs a statewide team for the Mass. Institute of Medicine Action Coalition for Nursing. She is also a founding member of the Western Mass. Nursing Collaborative.
Consulting internationally for the Institute for Nursing Healthcare Leadership and Partners Healthcare International (formerly Partners Harvard Medical International) since 1999, Scoble has had programmatic experience in multiple countries, including Colombia, India, China, Dubai, and Turkey. She is a member of Sigma Theta Tau International and the National Honor Society of Alpha Sigma Lambda. She has also held faculty appointments at Teachers College, Columbia University, and UMass Boston. Her administrative posts in acute-care organizations have ranged from unit manager to chief nurse executive.
