HOULTON, Maine — U.S. Senator Susan Collins recently announced a major federal grant to Cary Medical Center in Caribou to support the development of a collaboration of 10 hospitals that serve five counties in northeastern Maine called the Rural Health Innovation Network (RHIN).
The three-year, $848,478 Network Development Grant was awarded by the Health Resources and Services Administration. It will engage 10 hospitals including, Cary Medical Center, Houlton Regional Hospital, Mayo Regional Hospital in Dover-Foxcroft, Northern Maine Medical Center in Fort Kent, Millinocket Regional Hospital, St. Joseph Hospital in Bangor, Penobscot Valley Hospital in Lincoln, Mount Desert Island Hospital in Bar Harbor, Calais Regional Hospital and Down East Community Hospital in Machias.
RHIN member hospitals have been collaborating formally and informally since the 1990s to achieve efficiencies, expand access to and improve the quality of health services, and strengthen population health in some of the most rural and impoverished counties in Maine.
In making the announcement, Sen. Collins pointed to the significance of the project.
“I am pleased that, with this grant, Cary Medical Center will support development and utilization of technology in the delivery of health care services to geographically isolated, low income, and elderly patients,” said Sen. Collins who, along with Maine Sen. Angus King, signed a letter supporting the grant application.
“The grant will focus on chronic diseases including heart failure and diabetes. In addition, using advanced, secure communication networks, the participating hospitals will have the ability to develop and share best practices and physician specialists, as well as work together to address the challenges of rural health care while maintaining their independent status,” she added.
“We are very excited about the Network Development grant, which will enhance our Case Management Program,” said Houlton Regional Hospital CEO Tom Moakler. “The 10 hospitals will be able to implement best case management practices for patients with diabetes, congestive heart failure and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. The management of these diseases will improve by improving the coordination of services, which will reduce hospital re-admissions for these patients.”
Kris Doody, RN, MSB, FACHE, and CEO at Cary Medical Center said that all the hospitals involved with the project face many of the same challenges.
“All of us as hospitals delivering services in rural Maine are dealing with shrinking reimbursement, challenges in physician recruitment, high technology and labor costs and a rapidly aging population,” said Doody. “By working together we can share ideas, programs and services to the benefit of our patients and the communities we serve while preserving our own unique organizational culture and local control. This is a novel, innovative concept and we believe the possibilities are only limited by our imagination.”
A major priority of the RHIN will be to integrate clinical care for the chronically ill populations by coordinating and sharing services among the participating hospitals. Four of the five counties served by the collaborative have the highest rates of hospitalizations for congestive heart failure and the highest percentage of adults with diabetes.
Peter Sirois, CEO at Northern Maine Medical Center, said that the strength of the RHIN lies within the confidence and trust that has been built over time through many years of working together.
“Our rural hospitals have always been innovative,” said Sirois. “We have had to be in order to charter a successful course through the ever-changing healthcare industry. Over the years many of us have worked together to solve problems and improve both quality and efficiency. This grant will take us to an entirely new level building upon the foundation we have established.”
In addition to providing funding for project staff, the federal grant will also provide more than $100,000 for state-of-the-art tele-health equipment including real time HD interactive video and other secure network communication technology.
