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Central Maine Medical Center nationally recognized ‘A’-gain

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Fall 2020 Hospital Safety Grade marks fifth ‘A’ in a row for CMMC

Central Maine Medical Center earned its fifth ‘A’ grade in a row for hospital safety from The Leapfrog Group, an independent national watchdog organization and advocate for hospital transparency.

The national distinction announced Monday is for the Fall 2020 Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade. It is the fifth time that CMMC has earned the highest grade possible for protecting patients from harm and providing safer health care.

“An accomplishment like this – five ‘A’s in a row – can only happen when the entire team is focused on a shared vision,” said CMMC President Steven G. Littleson, DBA, FACHE. “This achievement is the direct result of the dedication and hard work of our Central Maine Medical Center team who live our mission of providing exceptional, safe healthcare every day.”

The Leapfrog Group is driven by employers and other purchasers of healthcare and committed to improving health care quality and safety for consumers and purchasers. The Safety Grade assigns an ‘A’, ‘B’, ‘C’, ‘D’ or ‘F’ grade to all general hospitals across the country based on their performance in preventing medical errors, injuries, accidents, infections and other harms to patients in their care.

“We’re proud to have earned this recognition from The Leapfrog Group once again,” said Central Maine Healthcare Chief Medical Officer John Alexander, MD, MHCM, FACEP. “In all that we do, we strive to provide safe, reliable, high-quality care. That commitment is making a real difference for our patients and the communities we are honored to serve.”

Developed under the guidance of a national Expert Panel, the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade uses up to 27 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to assign grades to more than 2,600 U.S. acute-care hospitals twice per year. The Hospital Safety Grade’s methodology is peer-reviewed and fully transparent, and the results are free to the public.

“We are extremely grateful to hospital leadership and healthcare workers who have remained steadfast in prioritizing patient safety as our nation battles COVID-19,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. “This ‘A’ is a testament to the care and commitment of those who work for Central Maine Medical Center. With the current pandemic exposing existing flaws within the U.S. healthcare system, we appreciate you putting patient safety first. Lives depend on it.”

Central Maine Healthcare welcomes new members to Board of Directors

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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.

CMH enhances COVID precautions to address Russell Park outbreak

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Central Maine Healthcare has put in place additional coronavirus infection prevention protocols in light of the outbreak at Russell Park Rehabilitation and Living Center.

“Our top priority is the safety of our patients, staff and the communities we serve,” said CMH Chief Medical Officer John L. Alexander, MD, MHCM, FACEP. “Community spread is driving the increase in COVID-19 cases in Maine and we have adopted additional safeguards to counter that threat.”

Central Maine Medical Center has put in place additional precautions that include:

  • strict use of patient masking in rooms when a caregiver is present;
  • placing all patients admitted from long-term care facilities experiencing COVID-19 infection on droplet and contact precautions, regardless of their initial testing result; and
  • reinforcing strict environmental cleaning and sanitizing of patient care areas.

Those are in addition to the multiple layers of protection already in place at CMH facilities such as screening of all patients, visitors and staff for symptoms; documentation of every person entering in case contact tracing is needed; controlled entry points to prevent unscreened individuals from coming inside; masking and social distancing required at all times inside; and appropriate personal protective equipment required for all patient-facing staff, with monitoring for proper use.

CMH is tracking possible exposures of CMMC team members who have had close contact with Russell Park employees who tested positive for the virus. CMH is quarantining those CMMC team members for 14 days after their exposure and testing CMMC team members who exhibit symptoms.

The CMMC director of infection prevention has been working  closely with the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

 

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

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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

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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

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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.