A longtime employee of The Wright Centers for Community Health and Graduate Medical Education has been included in a statewide list honoring the most influential individuals who help their companies, organizations, and associations communicate their legislative priorities to elected officials.

Spadaro joined The Wright Center in February 2021, where she has played a pivotal role in advocating for federal and state policies impacting public health, particularly for community health centers. Her work addresses critical issues such as equitable investments in Federally Qualified Health Centers and Federally Qualified Health Center Look-Alikes, sustainable funding for Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education programs, protections for the 340B Drug Pricing Program, health care workforce innovations, and greater health information interoperability, vaccine access, and Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement for key primary care and preventive health services.

Under her leadership, The Wright Center has secured $4 million to support underserved communities, achieved gold-status Advocacy Center recognition, and amplified primary care clinicians’ voices through over 50 regulatory responses.

Before joining The Wright Center, Spadaro worked at the Pennsylvania Department of Health, where she led initiatives to curb the opioid epidemic, maternal mortality, gun violence, and the COVID-19 pandemic.

City & State is the premier multimedia news organization dedicated to covering Pennsylvania’s local and state politics and policy. To read the “Who’s Who in Government Relations” article, go to www.cityandstatepa.com.

Two of The Wright Center for Community Health’s clinics received commendations from the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) for delivering high-quality, patient-centered care.

“Our continued certification as a Patient-Centered Medical Home reaffirms to the communities we serve that our team-based care approach and advanced technology deliver timely, effective care,” said Dr. Jignesh Sheth, senior vice president and chief medical and information officer at The Wright Centers for Community Health and Graduate Medical Education. “This model fosters strong partnerships between patients and clinicians, enabling more responsive and comprehensive health care. We’re honored to receive this recognition once again for our dedication and hard work.”

The NCQA, based in Washington, D.C., was founded in 1990 with support from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. It seeks to improve health care quality through measurement, transparency, and accountability.

Dr. Stephen S. Long Jr., an internal medicine-pediatrics (Med-Peds) physician at The Wright Centers for Community Health and Graduate Medical Education, has been selected to serve a three-year term as an American College of Physicians (ACP) 2025 Well-being Champion for the Pennsylvania Chapter’s Eastern Region.

“I am truly privileged to be selected as an ACP Well-being Champion,” said Dr. Long, a Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, native who is board-certified in internal medicine and pediatrics. “Physician well-being is critical to providers’ health and the quality of care we deliver to our patients. I am committed to working alongside my colleagues to foster a supportive, sustainable work environment that prioritizes both professional fulfillment and patient-centered care.”

As the nation’s largest medical specialty organization, the ACP is dedicated to advancing health care quality and effectiveness by promoting excellence and professionalism in medicine. It advocates for quality patient care, education, and career fulfillment within internal medicine and its subspecialties. Dr. Linda Thomas-Hemak, president and CEO of The Wright Center, serves as the governor of the ACP’s Pennsylvania Chapter, Eastern Region.

A University of Scranton graduate, Dr. Long earned his medical degree from the Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine and completed his Med-Peds residency at MaineHealth Maine Medical Center in Portland before returning to Northeast Pennsylvania.

Dr. Long is available for appointments with patients of all ages at The Wright Center for Community Health Clarks Summit, 1145 Northern Blvd., South Abington Township, on Mondays and Tuesdays and The Wright Center for Community Health Mid Valley, 5 S. Washington Ave., Jermyn, from Wednesdays through Fridays. To schedule an appointment with Dr. Long, visit TheWrightCenter.org or call the Clarks Summit location at 570-585-1300 or the Mid Valley location at 570-230-0019.

Dr. Long is married to Juliette Meyers, an Archbald native and art therapist at The Wright Center.

A longtime doctor, executive, and educator at The Wright Centers for Community Health and Graduate Medical Education has been appointed to the Pennsylvania Medical Society Board of Trustees.

Dr. William Dempsey, a board-certified family medicine physician, medical director of The Wright Center for Community Health Clarks Summit, and chief population health value-based care officer at The Wright Center, will represent doctors in Carbon, Lackawanna, Luzerne, Monroe, Pike, and Wayne counties for a four-year term. The Pennsylvania Medical Society’s Board of Trustees, which meets quarterly, oversees the operations of the Pennsylvania Medical Society.

He is also interested in using his time on the board as an opportunity to exchange ideas on new ways to address the addiction epidemic throughout the state and improve collaborative care for patients to better integrate behavioral health, oral health, and other services with primary care. Both topics are vitally important to The Wright Center’s mission.

The Pennsylvania Department of Health has appointed The Wright Center for Community Health’s director of addiction services to its Maternal Mortality Review Committee as an addiction treatment specialist.

Kolcharno also played a key role in launching the Healthy Maternal Opiate Medical Support Program (Healthy MOMS) in 2018. The novel program focuses on helping pregnant women and new mothers overcome addiction and embrace a life in recovery. Under Kolcharno’s leadership, Healthy MOMS has supported more than 500 mothers and 300 babies and expanded into nine Northeast Pennsylvania counties.

The state’s Maternal Mortality Review Committee was established in 2018 to systematically review all pregnancy-associated deaths, identify the root causes of these deaths, and develop strategies to reduce preventable morbidity, and mortality related to pregnancy in Pennsylvania.

In her role on the committee, Kolcharno’s experience will be crucial to the case review discussion and development of actionable recommendations to prevent similar tragedies. These recommendations will provide necessary improvements to the medical and social care of pregnant and postpartum individuals in the commonwealth with the goal of preventing and eliminating future pregnancy-associated deaths and associated morbidities.

“It is a privilege to be chosen to serve on the Maternal Mortality Review Committee,” said Kolcharno. “I look forward to collaborating with colleagues across the state to tackle this serious public health issue. Together, we can empower individuals to take control of their health and well-being.”

Dr. Linda Thomas-Hemak, president and CEO of The Wright Centers for Community Health and Graduate Medical Education, was named one of the 100 most powerful and influential female leaders in Pennsylvania by City & State Pennsylvania. The multimedia organization debuted its third annual Women 100 list on Dec. 23.

The list highlights the achievements of women in numerous fields – including government, nonprofits, education, business, labor, and advocacy – who are shaping Pennsylvania’s future with their visionary leadership and significant contributions. Honorees included Kim Ward, president pro tempore, Senate of Pennsylvania; Joanna McClinton, speaker, Pennsylvania House of Representatives; Cherelle Parker, mayor of Philadelphia; and Leslie C. Davis, president and CEO, UPMC.

Dr. Thomas-Hemak graduated from Scranton Preparatory School and the University of Scranton. After graduating as a Michael DeBakey Scholar from Baylor College of Medicine in Houston and completing Harvard’s Combined Internal Medicine/Pediatrics Residency Program in Boston, she returned to Northeast Pennsylvania, joining The Wright Center in 2001, becoming president in 2007, and CEO in 2012.

Under her stewardship, The Wright Center has expanded its growing network of community health centers in Lackawanna, Luzerne, Wayne, and Wyoming counties, including a mobile medical and dental unit called Driving Better Health.

She also guided The Wright Center to achieve numerous prestigious distinctions, including its designation as a Federally Qualified Health Center Look-Alike in 2019, which unlocked essential federal resources for the region and significantly expanded health care access. The Wright Center has also been recognized as a Top 30 Site for National Primary Care Innovations by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and, in 2024, was inducted into the esteemed American Medical Association’s ChangeMedEd Consortium.

Dr. Thomas-Hemak also led The Wright Center for Community Health’s transformation into one of the first state-designated Opioid Use Disorder Centers of Excellence in 2016, improving access to substance use disorder treatment. Amid rising obesity rates, she guided physicians in obtaining board certification in obesity medicine to better address critical health needs.

She also transformed The Wright Center for Graduate Medical Education into one of the nation’s largest Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education Safety-Net Consortiums (GME-SNC).

Dr. Thomas-Hemak also serves as the governor for the Eastern Region of the Pennsylvania Chapter of the American College of Physicians, the nation’s largest medical-specialty organization. She sits on numerous local, regional, and national health care and medical education nonprofit governing boards, cross-sector committees, and workgroups, including the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration’s Council on Graduate Medical Education, a federal advisory committee that assesses and recommends actions on physician workforce trends, training issues, and financing policies.

She is chair of the Northeast Pennsylvania Area Health Education Center Governing Board and a governing board member of the Keystone Accountable Care Organization, The Institute, and the Center for Health and Human Services Research and Action. She is also a founding member of the consortium that established the Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine and a founding board member of the American Association of Teaching Health Centers.

Dr. Thomas-Hemak has received several prestigious state and national awards for her leadership, mentorship, and advocacy initiatives, including the 2024 Hometown Scholars Advocacy Award from the National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC) and A.T. Still University for her exemplary leadership in mentoring and inspiring others; the 2024 Wilford Payne Health Center Mentor Award from the Pennsylvania Association of Community Health Centers; NACHC’s 2022 Elizabeth K. Cooke Advocacy MVP Award for her efforts in engaging Congress and expanding grassroots advocacy; and the 2020 Ann Preston Women in Medicine Award from the Pennsylvania Chapter of the American College of Physicians for advancing women’s leadership in medicine.

She and her husband, Mark, reside in Jermyn and have three children: Mason, Maya, and Antoinette. Dr. Thomas-Hemak is the daughter of the late William Thomas and Johanna Cavalieri Thomas, who lives in Archbald.