Real healthcare sharing

A principle point in the Op-Ed piece, “Sharing healthcare,” by Larry Ross of Nov. 28 is factually incorrect. On the day that article was printed, I along with a couple of other Bangor-area physicians were staffing the Specialty Clinic of Sebasticook Valley Hospital. All of us there that day, along with many other Bangor-area physicians and physicians from the Waterville area have been staffing that clinic since before there was any formal arrangement between Sebasticook Valley Hospital and Eastern Maine Healthcare. Indeed, we have been staffing that clinic for years before the arrival of Norman Ledwin, chief executive officer of EMH and its affiliated entities.

These clinics are, in essence, outreach clinics provided by the physician offices. Many Bangor-area physicians provide these services to hospitals, regardless of their affiliation with the Eastern Maine Health System. We do this because we find these clinics to be of great value to our patients and we prefer to work cooperatively with all of this region’s hospitals.

Stephanie R. Lash, M.D.

Bangor