BRUNSWICK — Mid Coast Hospital staff and donors, and members of the public gathered June 6 to celebrate the $6.2 million renovation and grand opening of its Parkview Campus.

The event included remarks by hospital administrators, a ribbon-cutting and tours through the upgraded space.

Combined with other projects, more than 44,000 square feet of the former hospital building was renovated. It includes a primary care practice, wellness education center, and comprehensive cancer center, as well as administrative spaces.

Sandy Morrell Rooney, chairwoman of the board of Mid Coast-Parkview Health, said it has been three years since the integration of Mid Coast Health Services and Parkview Adventist Medical Center.

She also announced Harpswell residents Frank, Anne, and Frank Crooker Jr. donated $1 million towards the Mid Coast Center for Community Health & Wellness – a 9,000-square-foot area within the Parkview campus that will house the hospital’s wellness programs and education.

In honor of their contribution, Rooney said the wellness center is now officially named the Frank, Anne, and Frank Crooker Jr. Wellness Center.

“With the formation of Mid Coast-Parkview Health,” Dr. Timothy Howe of Parkview Medical Associates said, “Brunswick and the surrounding towns have a unique opportunity to reverse the health care trends and reduce cost in our communities.”

On average, he said, the United States annually spends twice as much per person on health care than the other top 10 wealthiest countries in the world, yet does not have the lowest disease rate or the longest life expectancy.

He added 75 percent of the $3.5 trillion to be spent this year in the U.S. on health care will be on “largely” preventable diseases, such as stroke, cancer, and type II diabetes.

Some conditions are genetic, but many diseases, he said, are caused by “poor diet, lack of exercise, and smoking,” which is why more should be spent on prevention.

Cate Parker, director of community health and wellness at Mid Coast Hospital, led attendees through rooms in the wellness education center, which includes a medical exercise room and a teaching kitchen, where cooking classes on how to prepare plant-based food are now available.

She said all food prepared in the wellness center will be plant-based, including in the café, due to the health benefits that come with eating such a diet.

The center will also teach classes in mindfulness techniques such as meditation, tai chi, and yoga, and also has consult rooms for patient lectures on topics such as smoking cessation and nutrition.

Medically based exercises for cancer, stroke, and other chronic diseases will also be offered.

Also located on the upgraded campus is a new cancer center, which is part of the MaineHealth Cancer Care Network, offering care in affiliation with MaineHealth and Boston’s Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

Sandy Morrell Rooney and Chuck Rooney donated $500,000 towards the center’s completion.

The resource center, which is affiliated with the American Cancer Society, allows patients access to cancer-related services such as medical oncology, infusion, and laboratory work.

The new Parkview Campus also features a 10,000-square-foot primary care practice, offering both routine and preventative care for children and adults, with eight physicians on site.

Elizabeth Clemente can be reached at 781-3661 ext. 100 or eclemente@theforecaster.net. Follow Elizabeth on Twitter @epclemente.

Hospital officials and board members of Mid Coast-Parkview Health on June 6 led the grand opening of the hospital’s Parkview Campus, which underwent a $6.2 million renovation.

Hospital officials and board members of Mid Coast-Parkview Health on June 6 led the grand opening of the hospital’s Parkview Campus, which underwent a $6.2 million renovation.

Copy the Story Link