Maine's Capital Area

The public is invited to participate in two community meetings to help identify local health needs and priorities. The meetings are sponsored by area health care organizations including MaineGeneral Health and Northern Light Inland Hospital.

These free forums are being held:

• Somerset County – Wednesday, Oct. 17, 3:30 – 5:30 p.m.

Skowhegan High School Cafeteria, 61 Academy Circle, Skowhegan

• Kennebec County – Thursday, Oct. 18, 4 – 6 p.m.

Thomas College, Spann Commons Summit Room, 180 West River Road, Waterville

            Go to www.mainechna.org to learn more and sign up for a forum

(click on Find a Forum on the left-hand navigation)

The public meetings represent the important step of presenting data on the health of communities in each Maine county and getting feedback from the public about prioritizing health issues going forward.

MaineGeneral and Northern Light Inland Hospital are part of a statewide collaboration of health systems and hospitals and the state Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) called the Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) for the purpose of coordinating state and county needs assessments. This effort provides valuable population health assessment data for a wide variety of organizations across Maine. By doing this together, duplication of efforts is avoided and collaborative partnerships are fostered. The CHNA reports provide up-to-date health information at the state, county, urban and sub-population levels.