We’re Here for You! Coronavirus (COVID-19) Updates
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Pay My Bill
  • Patient Portal
  • Careers
  • Health Professionals
  • Medical Education
Central Maine Healthcare

Central Maine Healthcare

Changing the Face of Healthcare in Maine

  • Providers & Locations
        • Providers

          • Find A Provider
        • Locations

          • Central Maine Medical Center
          • Bridgton Hospital
          • Rumford Hospital
          • Topsham Care Center
          • Maine Urgent Care
          • Find a Practice
  • Services
        • Services

          • Audiology
          • Bariatric Surgery
          • Behavioral Health
          • Breast Health
          • Cancer Care
          • Diabetes & Endocrinology Care
          • Ear, Nose & Throat (ENT)
          • Emergency Care
          • Gastroenterology
          • Heart & Vascular Care
          • Imaging Services
          • Integrative Medicine
          • Long-Term Care
          • Maternity Services
          • Neurosciences
          • Nutrition Services
          • Occupational Health
          • Orthopaedic Care
          • Palliative Care
          • Pediatrics
          • Pharmacy
          • Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery
          • Primary Care
          • Pulmonary Care
          • Rehabilitation & Therapy
          • Rheumatology
          • Sleep Medicine
          • Surgical Services
          • Telehealth Services
          • Topsham Care Center
          • Trauma Center
          • Urgent Care
          • Urology
          • Women’s Health
          • Wound Care
  • Patients and Visitors
        • Patients & Visitors

          • Advanced Care Planning
          • Billing & Financial Information
          • Be Safe Speak Up
          • Health Library
          • myHealthlink Patient Portal
          • Notary Public
          • Patient Relations
          • Spiritual Support
          • Student Nurses
          • Tobacco and Smoke Free Campuses
          • Your Rights and Responsibilities
        • Living Well

          • Classes and Events
  • About Us
        • About Us

          • About Central Maine Healthcare
          • ACO Public Reporting
          • Accreditations and Certifications
          • Board of Directors
          • CMH Alert – COVID-19
          • CMH News
          • CMH Privacy Policy
          • Community Benefits
          • Contact CMH
          • Leadership Team
          • Mission, Vision & Values
          • Social Media Policy
          • Topsham Ambulatory Surgery Center
          • Vendor Relations
          • Quality & Safety
        • Ways to Give

          • Ways to Give
          • Contact the Development Office
          • Donor Bill of Rights
          • Donate Now
          • Events and Fundraisers
          • Planned Giving
          • Volunteer

Bridgton Hospital

Central Maine Healthcare welcomes new members to Board of Directors

Published on December 8, 2020

Chair Deborah Dunlap Avasthi passes torch to Devore S. Culver

Deborah-Dunlap-Avasthi
Deborah Dunlap Avasthi

The Central Maine Healthcare Board of Directors will have a new chair, Devore S. Culver, and five new members in 2021 to advance the organization’s mission of providing exceptional healthcare services in a safe and trustful environment through the expertise, commitment and compassion of its team of caregivers.

Culver, the current Board vice chair, takes over the role from Chair Deborah Dunlap Avasthi as she comes to the end of her term on Jan, 1, 2021. Joining the Board are: Marney Chalmers; Ann Connelly; David Salko, MD; Louis Silverman; and Hector Tarraza, MD.

“We are grateful for Deb’s dedication to the Central Maine Healthcare mission. Her vision and leadership over the past 18 years have been instrumental in making convenient, accessible high-quality healthcare a reality for more Maine people,” said CMH President and CEO Jeffrey L. Brickman, FACHE. “We look forward to building upon that foundation with Dev as our next Board chair and with our incoming members. Together, they bring dynamic leadership skills, deep expertise in their fields and tremendous business acumen that will help us change the face of healthcare in Maine.”

The Board on Wednesday approved the election and appointment of Culver as chair and of the five new board members. The changes take effect in January 2021.

Devore-S-Culver
Devore S. Culver

Devore S. Culver: Culver is a healthcare consultant and the former CEO of the nonprofit information services organization HealthInfoNet, based in New Gloucester. In his roles as vice chair of the CMH Board and interim chair of its Quality, Value and Community Health Committee, he guides the organization in its pursuit of providing high-quality, low-cost and accessible healthcare to Mainers. He brings to the role statewide knowledge of health care delivery and experience accomplishing strategic and operational goals through automated information systems. He earned his bachelor’s degree from Brown University and his master’s degree from Northwestern University.

Marney Chalmers
Marney Chalmers

Marney Chalmers: Chalmers is vice president of sales and marketing at Bridgton-based NAHGA Claims Services, a third-party medical claims administrator, where she has increased revenue and productivity and worked to engage and inform employees. She previously worked in sourcing, as a buyer and in merchandising for West Elm. She earned her bachelor’s degree from the Parsons School of Design.

Ann Connelly
Ann Connelly

Ann Connelly: Connelly is a legal and compliance leader who served as general counsel and chief compliance officer for Martin’s Point Health Care. She was previously associate general counsel for IDEXX Laboratories and an associate attorney with the employment law practice group of Pierce Atwood. She earned her bachelor’s degree from Bucknell University and her JD from the University of Maine School of Law.

David Salko
David Salko, M.D.

David Salko, MD: Salko has served as the primary care medical director for the Midcoast Region of Central Maine Medical Center since 2009. He has participated in the Handley Physician Leadership Academy and leads one of the patient-centered medical homes at Central Maine Healthcare. He earned his bachelor’s degree from Franklin and Marshall College and his doctor of medicine from Jefferson Medical College. His received his residency training at Maine Medical Center and is board certified in family medicine.

Louis Silverman
Louis Silverman

Louis E. Silverman: A native Mainer, Silverman is chairman and CEO of Advanced ICU Care, Inc. He leads, professionalizes and grows the technology-enabled healthcare services company, which provides remote ICU, cardiac telemetry and post-acute monitoring services. Originally from Lewiston-Auburn, he has led businesses including those in healthcare revenue cycle management, practice management software and managed care technology and services. He earned his bachelor’s degree from Amherst College and his MBA from the Harvard Graduate School of Business Administration.

Hector-M-Tarraza
Hector M. Tarraza, M.D.

Hector M. Tarraza, MD: Tarraza is a renowned healthcare leader, surgical chief of the Central Maine Healthcare Oncology Institute and associate chief of surgery at CMH. A graduate of Harvard College and Harvard Medical School, he received his residency and fellowship training at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital. He is board certified in gynecologic oncology and OB/GYN.

Central Maine Healthcare Cancer Care Center groundbreaking heralds expanded and enhanced services for region

Published on October 29, 2020

Central Maine Healthcare on Thursday broke ground for its new Cancer Care Center that consolidates cutting-edge oncology services in a convenient location for the region.

“It’s a momentous day for Central Maine Healthcare and the communities we serve. Patients will have increased access to high-quality care supported by the latest technology – all close to where they live, work, play and pray,” said Jeffrey L. Brickman, FACHE, president and CEO of Central Maine Healthcare. “It’s part of our vision to change the face of healthcare in Maine.”

Healthcare professionals, elected officials and community leaders joined Central Maine Healthcare to celebrate the occasion. The masked, socially distanced groundbreaking ceremony took place at the Central Maine Healthcare Cancer Care Center GroundbreakingCentral  Maine Medical Center campus in Lewiston, where the Cancer Care Center will be built.

Construction on the $33.2 million project is scheduled to begin next week and is expected to be completed in February 2022. One of the goals of the ambitious project is consolidating oncology services in an accessible, centralized location so patients do not have to make their way to different parts of the Lewiston hospital campus for their care.

The need for expanded and enhanced cancer care is great, said Central Maine Medical Center President Steven G. Littleson, DBA, FACHE. He noted that the incidence of cancer in Maine has increased, and Androscoggin County has one of the highest occurrences of cancer in the state.

“Cancer is the leading cause of death in Maine and our state has the 12th-highest rate of cancer mortality,” Littleson said. “Our objective with this awesome new facility is to put a serious dent in those numbers.”

The new two-story, 52,000-square-foot Cancer Care Center will house the Central Maine Cancer Institute, which provides multispecialty, team-based care. The facility will also house new equipment, including new linear accelerators critical for radiation therapy.

Hector Tarraza, MD, CMH’s system chief of oncology and associate chief of surgical care, spoke of the staff who will care for the patients at the Cancer Care Center.

“Doctors, nurses, staff members, social workers, pharmacists – a team truly dedicated to caring for these individuals. One of the nicest things that I know about the staff is that every single one of them will treat them with their heart,” he said. “They’re going to provide understanding and kindness and caring and empathy throughout their entire journey as they are treated.”

Plans Presented for New Low-Cost Surgery Center in Topsham

Published on July 22, 2020

State Hears Arguments for Approval

 

Topsham Care CenterPlans for a new low-cost, convenient location for same-day surgery in the Mid-Coast—where no such facility currently exists—were presented Wednesday.

Speaker after speaker from Central Maine Healthcare—the sponsor of the ambulatory surgical center (ASC)—described the value and potential of the project, which would be the 17th ASC in Maine and the first and only ASC affiliated with a health system but untethered to hospital facilities or high costs. The roster of speakers also included representatives from insurance companies, employers, business leaders and independent physicians.

In what might be another first, the “virtual” hearing by the State of Maine’s Certificate of Need unit was conducted via the Zoom platform.

“The community has asked us for this service, which would provide much more affordable outpatient surgery and procedures close to home,” said Jeffrey L. Brickman, FACHE, CEO of Central Maine Healthcare. “We’ve been in the Mid-Coast for more than a dozen years and this is a natural progression of the care we offer the community.”

Currently, CMH is represented in three locations in Topsham, including the multi-disciplinary Topsham Care Center, Maine Urgent Care and Topsham Family Medicine.

The need for an ASC exists because while outpatient surgeries are provided at a local hospital, those procedures are billed at nearly 50 percent more than those at a typical ASC. Many patients face the choice of paying the high prices charged in hospitals or traveling long distances to receive care elsewhere.

Dr. David Salko, who has practiced at Topsham Family Medicine for 12 years and lives locally, told the state officials of patients who have made the choice to forgo important screening exams and surgeries because their health care deductibles and or co-pays are high.

The $14 million ASC would be constructed at the Topsham Fair Mall adjacent or nearby the Care Center and the urgent care site.

The facility would:

  • Be housed in a 20,000 foot building with two operating rooms and four procedure rooms
  • Offer care from top-flight CMH providers
  • Offer cancer care and reconstructive surgery, Ear, Nose and Throat, Gastrointestinal procedures and Urology care.
  • Provide care to MaineCare and Medicare enrolled patients as well as the insured (CMH also provides a disproportionate level of free or charity care throughout its system).

 

The project has won the endorsement of:

  • Anthem, the largest private insurer in Maine.
  • Harvard Pilgrim
  • The Healthcare Payers Alliance of Maine (representing employers and business owners)
  • Martins Point (the largest group of primary care providers in Maine)
  • The Board of Topsham Development Inc., the municipal economic development panel

 

“The Midcoast needs additional alternatives to support models premised on consumer choice,” said Denise McDonough, president of Anthem in Maine. “Looking to greater Portland, as well as New Hampshire and other markets, we see that hospitals can successfully coexist with ASCs as the delivery system seeks to meet the choice, access and affordability needs of patients.”

Nationally, in-hospital surgeries are projected to decrease over the next decade as patients increasingly turn to the convenience and safety of ambulatory centers. And, as the government and insurance companies scrutinize costs and push toward more value-based care, outpatient surgery is expected to increase by 11 percent in the next two years. The federal government has responded by adjusting Medicare payment policy to be more neutral regarding ASCs.

 

For more information:
Kate Carlisle
207-786-1810 (o)
703-589-8605 (m)

 

Central Maine Healthcare Stands for Justice and Equality

Published on June 3, 2020

Justice - Hands together

As healers, hospitals and providers have an important role to play in the wellbeing of their communities. Along with healthcare systems across the nation, Central Maine Healthcare believes in a vision of society where all individuals reach their highest potential for health.

The senseless killing of an unarmed black man in Minneapolis and the protests occurring in cities across the country highlight racial, ethnic and cultural inequities—including in healthcare—that are everyday realities for far too many people. As we’ve seen in the pandemic, communities of color have been disproportionately affected, both in infection rates and economic impact. The ongoing protests give voice to deep-seated frustration and hurt and the very real need for systemic change.

Raising our voices to speak out against injustice and stand up for our neighbors and communities is an essential part of our democracy. There are peaceful protesters who are trying to bring attention to long-simmering frustration and anger. And there are others whose actions are not reflective of what the protests are truly about. As many protest leaders have shared, the destruction of businesses and attacks on the law enforcement community are not only inexcusable but also undermine the focus on inequities that we all need to address.

At Central Maine Healthcare, we will continue to work toward our vision of a healthy society—for everyone. We recognize that while progress has been made, we have so much more work to do.

Central Maine Healthcare Takes More Steps to Ensure Safety

Published on March 14, 2020

Elective inpatient surgeries postponed, building access limited

LEWISTON, Maine—To ensure the safety of patients and staff during the rapidly evolving situation involving COVID-19, Central Maine Healthcare is postponing some elective surgeries and limiting access to its buildings, system officials said today.

Starting Monday, some elective surgeries involving overnight stays will be put off until the virus hazard has been reduced. This would include bariatric and some orthopedic procedures. Necessary or required surgeries—Caesarean sections and heart valve repair, for example, would proceed.  Same-day procedures like endoscopy and colonoscopy and minimally invasive surgeries, where the patient goes home within several hours, will continue as scheduled.  Providers are reaching out to patients with this information.

This new policy will reduce the number of inpatients at the system’s hospitals and free up beds in the case of a surge of patients. It will also reduce the traffic in the hospitals, thus lowering the risk of virus transmission.

The system has also restricted access to its hospitals, prohibiting most visitors and reducing the number of entry points. At Central Maine Medical Center, patient access will be through the main entrance at 60 High Street. Staff access has also been limited, officials said.

“As our hospitals contend with the very real challenge of screening for COVID-19, while caring for our many patients, it made sense to do everything we could to lower the risk of disease transmission in our hospitals,” said John Alexander, M.D., Chief Medical Officer for CMH. “Our top priority is the safety of our patients, our teams and the communities we serve.”

In another risk-prevention move, on Friday, the system started testing patients for COVID-19 and influenza in satellite screening sites set up near their emergency departments.

 

About Central Maine Healthcare

Central Maine Healthcare (CMH) is an integrated healthcare delivery system serving 400,000 people living in central, western, and mid-coast Maine. CMH’s hospital facilities include Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston, Bridgton Hospital, and Rumford Hospital. CMH also supports Central Maine Medical Group, a primary and specialty care practice organization. Other system services include the Central Maine Heart and Vascular Institute, a regional trauma program, LifeFlight of Maine’s southern Maine base, the Central Maine Cancer Center, and other high quality clinical services.

 

Contact: Kate Carlisle | 207-786-1810 | carliska@cmhc.org

CMH Gains Preliminary Approval for Cancer Center

Published on March 11, 2020

Central Maine Cancer Center Rendering

LEWISTON, Maine —The Central Maine Cancer Center, a planned $38 million investment for state-of-the-art care at Central Maine Medical Center’s Lewiston campus, has received initial approval from state regulators. The facility was proposed last December by Central Maine Healthcare. It will provide convenient, centralized access to the system’s superior outpatient oncology services, along with needed facility and equipment updates, CMH officials said.

“Our patients will receive cutting-edge care in one central location,” said Jeffrey L. Brickman, FACHE, CEO and President of Central Maine Healthcare. “The Cancer Center will provide the convenient access to care we are committed to offering.” Brickman noted that the new facility will house brand-new equipment, including new linear accelerators critical for radiation therapy. It will also be home to the Central Maine Cancer Institute, providing multispecialty, team-based care.

The Certificate of Need Unit of the state’s Department of Health and Human Services reviewed CMH’s application and this week announced preliminary approval.  Final review and approval is still pending from DHHS Commissioner Jeanne Lambrew.

Central Maine Medical Center has been providing care to the community for more than a century. As the hospital grew on its sprawling campus, its oncology service become spread out nearly three football fields apart, separating radiation oncology, medical oncology and surgeons. Meanwhile, radiation therapy equipment cannot be replaced in its current location—in one of the oldest buildings at the hospital.

At the same time, cancer incidence in Maine has increased, and Androscoggin County remains one of the areas with the highest occurrence of cancers in the state.

In a letter supporting the project, the Dempsey Center wrote: “The {center} would offer Central Mainers another reason to get the highest quality of care close to where they live and work.”

About Central Maine Healthcare

Central Maine Healthcare (CMH) is an integrated healthcare delivery system serving 400,000 people living in central, western, and mid-coast Maine. CMH’s hospital facilities include Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston, Bridgton Hospital, and Rumford Hospital. CMH also supports Central Maine Medical Group, a primary and specialty care practice organization. Other system services include the Central Maine Heart and Vascular Institute, a regional trauma program, LifeFlight of Maine’s southern Maine base, the Central Maine Cancer Center, and other high quality clinical services.

 

About Central Maine Medical Center

Central Maine Medical Center located in Lewiston, is a Level II Trauma Center serving Androscoggin County and the surrounding region. CMMC’s “Centers of Excellence” include the Central Maine Heart and Vascular Institute, the Central Maine Cancer Center, and a Trauma Services Program. CMMC is also the southern Maine base for LifeFlight of Maine, the state’s only medical helicopter service. Supported by the latest technologies, CMMC’s skilled professionals provide outstanding care delivered with compassion, kindness, and understanding. Learn more at: www.cmmc.org.

 

Contact: Kate Carlisle | 207-786-1810 | carliska@cmhc.org

  • Page 1
  • Page 2
  • Page 3
  • …
  • Page 9
  • Next Page »

Primary Sidebar

Central Maine Healthcare Logo

About Our Health System

  • Central Maine Medical Center
  • Bridgton Hospital
  • Rumford Hospital
  • Topsham Care Center
  • Physician Practices

I Want To…

  • Find A Provider
  • Find a Location
  • Find a Job
  • Pay My Bill
  • Make a Gift
  • Find a Class or Event

For Our Community

For Healthcare Professionals

  • Join Our Team
  • Graduate Medical Education

For Employees

  • Employee Portal
  • CMH Privacy Policy
  • Site Map