On January 13, 2022, more than 250 Corporators, board members, medical staff members, auxilians, donors, and community leaders attended the Mid Coast–Parkview Health annual meeting, which was held virtually due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The meeting was facilitated by Lennie Burke, Chair of the Mid Coast– Parkview Health Board of Directors. Andrew Mueller, MD, Chief Executive Officer of MaineHealth, was the keynote speaker.
During the meeting, Lois Skillings, President of Mid Coast–Parkview Health, provided an overview of the organization’s accomplishments last year, including finalizing its unification with MaineHealth, a process that began in 2019 and culminated on January 1, 2021. Skillings outlined the merger with MaineHealth as one of three significant undertakings that Mid Coast–Parkview Health’s care team members navigated in 2021. The other two achievements were the COVID-19 response and the launch of a new Shared Electronic Health Record in November. She credited the MaineHealth integration with contributing to these achievements.
"I can’t emphasize enough how being fully unified with MaineHealth has been an advantage and support with managing the pandemic, as well as advancing the clinical care of patients here at Mid Coast,” Skillings said. "During COVID-19, we have greatly benefitted from the collaboration with MaineHealth’s infectious disease specialists, quality and safety teams, and public health experts to provide guidance and supplies to keep our patients and care teams safe.”
When Mid Coast–Parkview Health launched the MaineHealth shared electronic health record this fall, it was one of the most significant IT undertakings in the history of the organization. One of the main reasons for the organizations decision to join MaineHealth, this new unified electronic health record reinforces quality of care and convenience for both patients and providers, and dramatically improves patient care. It also streamlines communications so that providers across different locations can quickly share important patient care information. With the shared electronic health record, Mid Coast Hospital and Mid Coast Medical Group also launched MyChart, a secure patient portal that allows patients to quickly access and share their health information.
"This is a game changer for our patients. Now, their health record follows them wherever they seek care in the extensive MaineHealth system and even beyond, securely and seamlessly,” said Skillings.
Dr. Mueller reinforced the importance of Mid Coast–Parkview Health’s adoption of MaineHealth’s shared electronic health record, particularly commenting on how smooth the transition was due to the contributions of Mid Coast–Parkview Health care team members. He also highlighted Mid Coast–Parkview Health’s steadfast commitment to high-quality delivery of care and how closely that aligns with MaineHealth’s vision of working together so that our communities are the healthiest in America.
Both Skillings and Dr. Mueller gave special recognition to Mid Coast–Parkview Health care team members for their dedication and hard work throughout the past year.
Skillings concluded with, "Our physicians and advanced practice professionals, nurses, clinical teams, and support staff are working as hard as ever to offer the best care possible locally and close to home. With the power and strength of being part of MaineHealth, this will continue for generations to come.”