August 6, 2025
For DJ Grady, farming has been a way of life since he was six. Now, more than five decades later, he continues that work on his nearly 300-acre farm in Scipio Center, located in New York’s Finger Lakes region. While DJ works on his farm, his left arm lays motionless at his side from a farming accident and subsequent stroke suffered when he was just 24 years old.
Today, DJ has a visitor on his farm. It’s his clinical case manager, Heather Chauncey, from the Bassett Healthcare Network’s New York Center for Agricultural Medicine and Health (NYCAMH). Recently honored with the Circle of Excellence Award from Excellus BlueCross BlueShield, NYCAMH enhances agricultural and rural health through prevention and treatment of occupational injury and illness. They provide services such as farm safety training, personal protective equipment fittings, mobile occupational health clinics and health assessments, most of which occur on farms across the state.
“We meet farmers where they live and work since it’s often difficult for farmers to leave the farm for appointments due to farm problems and pressures,” says Heather.
Mutual Respect Fosters Quality Care
As Heather greets DJ, it’s obvious there’s mutual respect. They’ve been having these visits for more than two years, developing a relationship of trust and understanding.
“During one of my visits, I noticed DJ struggling to reach the bottom step of his combine tractor,” Heather says, pointing to the large machine. “He was using the front tire to help him reach the step, which I could immediately see presented a safety hazard.”
Heather’s observation is exactly why these visits are so critical for farmers like DJ. There are more than two million farmers in the U.S., many of whom operate within an incredibly slim profit margin. Often, they experience injuries, pesticide exposure, heat stress, lack of shade, and inadequate drinking water.
When Heather looked into using state funding for farm equipment modifications, she found there hadn’t been support for this work in over 20 years. So, she and her NYCAMH teammates took action, successfully lobbying for funding to help DJ and other farmers.
While the process was long and laborious, DJ was able to get the necessary modifications, including handrails and an extra step that is closer to the ground. In completing the work, the NYCAMH team also created a blueprint for future needs. “We now have a farm modification team that works with the state, allowing for farm vehicle modifications to be done quickly and efficiently,” says Heather.
Award-Winning Care
This success is just one of many reasons NYCAMH earned the Circle of Excellence award from Excellus BCBS, which recognizes community partners who help reduce health care costs through prevention and innovative programming.
“Our collaboration with local providers is key to how we address rising health care costs as well as maintain the level of quality care our members expect and deserve,” says Tony Vitagliano, Excellus BCBS’s senior vice president of provider network engagement and regional president of the health insurer’s Utica-based operations.
For Chauncey and her team, the award is recognition of the hard work they do across the state.
“The number of miles our team travels over a six-month period is equal to driving twice around the equator,” says Heather. “By taking steps to help DJ, we prevented an accident that was almost certainly going to happen and that truly made a difference in his life, so today he is able to keep doing what he loves – farm."
As for DJ, he has no plans of slowing down. “I am going to keep farming and doing what I love one way or the other,” he says. “As long as I can climb up into one of these cabs, I’m not going to stop.”
To learn more about Excellus BCBS and its Circle of Excellence Awards, visit www.excellucbcbs.com; to learn more about NYCAMH, visit www.nycamh.org.
Contact:
Scott A. Gwilt
3157310076
