History of MHA

The Massachusetts Hospital Association was founded in 1936, and its members include 78 licensed member hospitals, many of which are organized within 30 member health systems, as well as interested individuals and other healthcare stakeholders. The association's key functions include:

Policy and Advocacy

As the primary representative of the hospital community in Massachusetts, MHA plays a central role in influencing the public policy environment. Grounded in the principle that caring for people is the primary mission of its member hospitals and health systems, MHA seeks to promote responsible public policy, encourage public accountability, and foster an appropriate balance between those who provide and those who pay for healthcare services.

Education

Continuing professional education is a cornerstone of MHA's service to its members and other health professionals. The primary goal of MHA's Center for Education and Professional Development is to support healthcare leaders in innovation and change in a complex and challenging environment.

The subject matter for MHA educational programming includes broad and “visionary” offerings, such as ethical and economic challenges facing healthcare leaders, the evolving relationships between hospitals and physicians, and trends in elder care. It also includes a wide variety of specific, “need to know” sessions on issues such as healthcare accreditation, trends in labor relations, and the status of Medicare risk products in the state.

MHA's Center for Education and Professional Development has pre-approved accreditation status for continuing education units with the American College of Health Care Executives and the American Medical Association.

MHA's Center for Education and Professional Development is dedicated to enhancing the competency and qualifications of the New England healthcare community by providing continuing education, products, and services of the highest value and greatest relevance. MHA's programs will stimulate critical thinking, while offering essential knowledge and skills.

Information

MHA Information Strategy

MHA's status as the primary representative of the Commonwealth's hospital and health system community allows the organization to serve as a clearinghouse for strategic information and perspective on the healthcare environment in Massachusetts and beyond. The goal of MHA's information services is to arm its membership with the tools they need to support leadership decisions and to understand and manage current, complex, or controversial issues.

Member Communications

MHA's member communications program is the primary vehicle supporting both MHA's core functions and its members' needs for timely, accurate, and strategically valuable information. Through a variety of print and electronic media, MHA keeps its members informed of current news and sensitized to significant emerging issues. Much of what is distributed to members is available in MHALink's Members Only Area.

Quality and Strategic Data Services

The complexity of healthcare requires increasingly sophisticated approaches to turning data into useful strategic information. MHA offers its members a range of data services and resources, from software to databases, addressing the cost, quality, and use of healthcare services to support managerial and clinical decision-making.

For more information about membership or to join MHA, please contact Patty Crowley, V.P., Governance & Member Relations, at (781) 262 - 6002.