All area residents should share in this success. Franklin Memorial
Hospital recently completed a $12.5 million renovation and expansion
project giving you a hometown hospital for the twenty-first century.
It includes: Family-centered birthing and pediatric units;
State-of-the-art ambulatory surgical center; Community Health Education
Center for guided access to the latest health information; Renovations
of the Surgical Suite to improve patient care and accommodate the latest
equipment; Permanent helipad with closer, safer access to the Emergency
Department for patients who must be airlifted and areas for medical
procedures and outpatient clinics, including a chemotherapy area.
The hospital serves all age groups from throughout the area with a
full-service facility, including a busy emergency room, medical/surgical
floors, inpatient and outpatient clinics, conference space, an ambulance
service, and other services, including a strong diabetes education program.
The hospital has received national attention for its "Contract
for Care" program that offers medical care to the area's poor and
uninsured, regardless of their ability to pay. Eligible patients can
work off the medical costs in various hospital departments. And under
the hospital's pilot Health Access Project, 100 economically disadvantaged
people are also receiving free or low-cost medical care.
With 35,000 members, the hospital¹s innovative HealthCard offers
discounts at over 300 participating local businesses. The card is designed
to connect people with their health provider and to promote doing business
in the area.
Franklin County has the lowest death rate in the state of Maine, largely
due to a 28-year-old comprehensive, community-based prevention program
that focuses on heart health. The SCORE-5 for Heart Health Program of
the hospital and its Western Maine Center for Heart Health gathers information
and develops personalized action plans in multiple settings, including
physician offices, work sites, community sites, and the Healthy Community
Coalition¹s mobile health unit. The program began with screening
for high blood pressure in 1974 and grew into a comprehensive cardiovascular
health care center affiliated with the hospital. This program addresses
individual lifestyle factors within the population and cardiovascular
health promotion. Rehabilitation within the community and hospital has
served as a model well beyond Maine. The program encourages residents
to be physically active, eat well, stay tobacco-free and lower blood
pressure and cholesterol rates.
A new kidney dialysis treatment center run by Fresenius Medical Care
has recently opened in East Wilton. The Center will serve kidney dialysis
patients from surrounding counties who have had to travel an hour or
more in the past for this life-saving service. The 5000 square foot
center is located at the intersection of Routes 2 & 4 and was
constructed at a cost of $500,000. The center includes 12 treatment
stations and also offers home dialysis consultation and support.
Residents and visitors can be proud of a tremendous health care facility
that serves the area well. Franklin Memorial Hospital does it all with
pride, innovation, and caring!
Visit Franklin Memorial
Hospital Website...