GREENFIELD — Upon her return to Baystate Franklin Medical Center (BFMC) as the new chief nursing officer and chief administrative officer, Greenfield resident Jodi Stack found her purpose working in health care with the goal of expanding health care access in Franklin County.

Stack, a native of Turners Falls, began her nursing career at BFMC in 2000 as a nursing assistant at the Beacon Recovery Center and then became a registered nurse in the Emergency Department from 2004 to 2015.

“This is my community and my family, neighbors and friends utilize these services, this is our hospital and it just seemed like the right time to take what I have learned and bring it here,” Stack explained. “It’s been great to be back. There are so many familiar faces that are still here and doing great work and a lot of new faces too.”

Stack did not expect to undertake a career in health care after getting her bachelor’s degree in business administration from Kennesaw State University in Georgia following high school.

She decided to make a career change, obtaining an associates degree in nursing from Greenfield Community College, where she found her calling.

“Health care has brought me to what my purpose is,” Stack said. “I can’t imagine being in any other realm than health care right now. There’s so much to do and so many good people doing the work.”

In 2015, Stack moved from BFMC to Brattleboro Memorial Hospital (BMH) in Vermont, where she began working as the director of patient experience until shifting roles to the director of community initiatives in 2017. Stack soon became the chief nursing officer at BMH in 2018 and chief operating officer in 2022, where she collected significant experience working in health care through multiple roles. Additionally, Stack holds a master of science in nursing administration from American International College in Springfield.

“It gave me a broader perspective of collaboration and how all these parts work together,” Stack explained about her time at BMH. “That includes the people doing the work in the hospital but also in the practices and the community, so I got a lot out of those positions.”

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Stack arrived at BFMC on June 24 after applying for the position, succeeding Deborah Provost who retired on July 2. While becoming integrated back into the BFMC community, Stack explained she and the medical center team want to focus on developing two main goals within the community as she continues to listen and learn from the team during her transition.

The first goal is to reduce barriers for employees to make herself and BFMC as an employer, the most accessible they can be to make employees feel heard and secure and to help their professional development. Stack explained that the goal is to, “make sure the people working here have what they need to be able to be successful in their roles, feel safe, supported and connected with their purpose and also make sure that anybody in the community is able to access us as an employer.”

The second goal is to provide access to the community to make services available, “The flip-side from the workforce, is strengthening access for the community to make sure we’re going to continue to provide the right kinds of services that our community needs and that all of the right voices are heard.”

As a former member of the executive leadership team at BMH, Stack had the responsibility to help develop operational goals for the organization and leadership among clinical departments to help improve staffing opportunities and positions. Stack emphasized her past experience and knowledge in not only nursing, but also experience in administration will help her at BFMC.

“There’s a lot of positive things going on and a lot of really good people dedicated to the community doing this work,” Stack said. “It’s been a pleasure to be back.”

An earlier version of this article inaccurately detailed where Jodi Stack has resided. The Turners Falls native now lives in Greenfield.