THERE'S NO STOPPING MAINE TRUSTEE
Skip to main content
MDHC_Logotype_white
Subscribe
  • My Account
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • News
    • This Week's News
    • COVID-19
    • Providers
    • Insurance
    • Government
    • Finance
    • Technology
    • Safety & Quality
    • People
    • Regional News
    • Digital Edition
    • Sticking to Mediterranean diet is good for the brain
      Joe Biden
      Revamp of the nation's vaccination effort may not be enough
      A man in a room with servers.
      Momentum grows to outsource hospital tech functions in 2021
      Firefighter walking towards forest fire.
      Wildfires producing more harmful pollution
    • COVID-19 hastens hospitals' revenue cycle outsourcing moves
      Operation Warp Speed Dr. Moncef Slaoui, Pfizer Group President Angela Hwang, Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel, CVS Health Executive Vice President Karen Lynch and McKesson CEO Brian Tyler participate in a panel discussion on the COVID-19 vaccine.
      Hospitals, drug companies strive to stand out virtually at JPM
      Dr. Bruce Siegel
      By protecting the healthcare safety net, Biden can put us on the path to a stronger country
      Joe Biden
      Revamp of the nation's vaccination effort may not be enough
    • The Check Up: Trenda Ray
      The Check Up: Trenda Ray of the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
      Trenda Ray
      Q&A: Arkansas nursing leader looking for creative staffing solutions as COVID cases surge
      Cook Lydia 4x6_i.jpg
      Northeast Ohio health systems increase community benefit values in 2019
      Vaccine rollout hits snag as health workers balk at shots
    • CMS approves rule forcing insurers to ease prior authorization
      COVID-19 still a big uncertainty for insurers in 2021
      Health insurers' outlook boosted after Dems' Georgia win
      humana_i.jpg
      Humana supports Ohio not-for-profits with $500,000
    • Joe Biden
      Revamp of the nation's vaccination effort may not be enough
      CMS will raise Medicare Advantage plan payments by 4.08% in 2022
      CMS approves rule forcing insurers to ease prior authorization
    • Operation Warp Speed Dr. Moncef Slaoui, Pfizer Group President Angela Hwang, Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel, CVS Health Executive Vice President Karen Lynch and McKesson CEO Brian Tyler participate in a panel discussion on the COVID-19 vaccine.
      Hospitals, drug companies strive to stand out virtually at JPM
      Intermountain, Trinity, Memorial Hermann behind $300M private equity fund
      Operation Warp Speed to bump up McKesson's stock price
      Reporter's notebook: J.P. Morgan's 2021 health conference
    • A man in a room with servers.
      Momentum grows to outsource hospital tech functions in 2021
      5 things to know about Google's $2.1B Fitbit acquisition
      Providence bets on machine-learning, consolidating data centers
      Mental health treatment was most common telehealth service during COVID
    • Sticking to Mediterranean diet is good for the brain
      Chance of COVID-19 triage care looms over Arizona hospitals
      U.S. ramps up vaccinations to get doses to more Americans
      367146427.jpg
      Should businesses mandate that staff get the COVID vaccine?
    • Cone Health CEO, CFO to depart amid pending Sentara merger
      Tower Health's finance chief resigning after years of steep losses
      AHRQ director Gopal Khanna resigns in response to Capitol riot
      Brigham president stepping down after Moderna controversy
    • Midwest
    • Northeast
    • South
    • West
  • Insights
    • ACA 10 Years After
    • Best Practices
    • InDepth Special Reports
    • Innovations
    • The Affordable Care Act after 10 years
    • New care model helps primary-care practices treat obesity
      doctor with patient
      COVID-19 treatment protocol developed in the field helps patients recover
      Rachel Wyatt
      Project to curb pressure injuries in hospitals shows promise
      Yale New Haven's COVID-19 nurse-staffing model has long-term benefits
    • Michellene Davis
      Healthcare leadership lacks the racial diversity needed to reduce health disparities
      Dr. James Hildreth
      How medical education can help fight racism
      Modern Healthcare InDepth: Breaking the bias that impedes better healthcare
      Videos: Healthcare industry executives describe their encounters with racism
      Quotes from rebadged employees
      Outsourcing IT, revenue cycle takes toll on internal culture
    • A woman with a wearable sensor talking to her provider.
      Wearable sensors help diagnose heart rhythm problems in West Virginia
      self service station
      COVID-19 pushes patient expectations toward self-service
      Targeting high-risk cancer patients with genetics
      A nurse holds up a phone with a message to a family member saying surgery has started.
      Texting, tablets help hospitals keep family updated on patient care
  • Transformation
    • Patients
    • Operations
    • Care Delivery
    • Payment
    • Highmark Health inks six-year cloud, tech deal with Google
      Study: 1 in 5 patients report discrimination when getting healthcare
      HHS proposes changing HIPAA privacy rules
      Android health records app launches at 230 health systems
    • California hospitals prepare ethical protocol to prioritize lifesaving care
      Amazon, JPMorgan Chase, Berkshire Hathaway disband Haven
      Digital pathways poised to reshape healthcare continuum in 2021
      Healthcare was the hardest hit by supply shortages across all U.S. industries
    • A woman with a wearable sensor talking to her provider.
      Wearable sensors help diagnose heart rhythm problems in West Virginia
      New care model helps primary-care practices treat obesity
      How hospitals are building on COVID-19 telehealth momentum
      Researchers: Hospital price variation exacerbates health inequities
    • MedPAC votes to boost hospital payments, freeze or cut other providers
      Most Next Gen ACOs achieved bonuses in 2019
      Congress recalibrates Medicare Physician Fee Schedule after lobbying
      CMS approves rule to encourage value-based drug pricing
  • Data/Lists
    • Rankings/Lists
    • Interactive Databases
    • Data Points
    • Health Systems Financials
      Executive Compensation
      Physician Compensation
  • Op-Ed
    • Bold Moves
    • Breaking Bias
    • Commentaries
    • Letters
    • Vital Signs Blog
    • From the Editor
    • Wellstar CEO calls adapting for the pandemic her bold move
      Howard P. Kern
      Recognizing the value of telehealth in its infancy
      Dr. Stephen Markovich
      A bold move helped take him from family doctor to OhioHealth CEO
      Dr. Bruce Siegel
      Why taking a hospital not-for-profit was Dr. Bruce Siegel’s boldest move
    • Barry Ostrowsky
      Ending racism is a journey taken together; the starting point must be now
      Laura Lee Hall and Gary Puckrein
      Increased flu vaccination has never been more important for communities of color
      John Daniels Jr.
      Health equity: Making the journey from buzzword to reality
      Mark C. Clement and David Cook
      We all need to 'do something' to fight inequities and get healthcare right, for every patient, every time
    • Dr. Bruce Siegel
      By protecting the healthcare safety net, Biden can put us on the path to a stronger country
      Healing healthcare: some ideas for triage by the new Congress, administration
      Dr. Sachin H. Jain
      Medicare for All? The better route to universal coverage would be Medicare Advantage for All
      Connectivity: a social determinant of health that can exacerbate all the others
    • Letters: Eliminating bias in healthcare needs to be ‘deliberate and organic’
      Letters: Maybe dropping out of ACOs is a good thing for patients
      Letters: White House and Congress share blame for lack of national COVID strategy
      Letters: VA making strides to improve state veterans home inspections
    • Sponsored Content Provided By Optum
      How blockchain could ease frustration with the payment process
      Sponsored Content Provided By Optum
      Three steps to better data-sharing for payer and provider CIOs
      Sponsored Content Provided By Optum
      Reduce total cost of care: 6 reasons why providers and payers should tackle the challenge together
      Sponsored Content Provided By Optum
      Why CIOs went from back-office operators to mission-critical innovators
  • Awards
    • Award Programs
    • Nominate
    • Previous Award Programs
    • Other Award Programs
    • Best Places to Work in Healthcare Logo for Navigation
      Nominations Open - Best Places to Work in Healthcare
      Nominations Open - Health Care Hall of Fame
      Nominations Open - 50 Most Influential Clinical Executives
    • 100 Most Influential People
    • 50 Most Influential Clinical Executives
    • Best Places to Work in Healthcare
    • Health Care Hall of Fame
    • Healthcare Marketing Impact Awards
    • Top 25 Emerging Leaders
    • Top 25 Innovators
    • Top 25 Minority Leaders
    • Top 25 Women Leaders
    • Excellence in Nursing Awards
    • Design Awards
    • Top 25 COOs in Healthcare
    • 100 Top Hospitals
    • ACHE Awards
  • Events
    • Conferences
    • Galas
    • Webinars
    • COVID-19 Event Tracker
    • Leadership Symposium
    • Healthcare Transformation Summit
    • Women Leaders in Healthcare Conference
    • Workplace of the Future Conference
    • Strategic Marketing Conference
    • Social Determinants of Health Symposium
    • Best Places to Work Awards Gala
    • Health Care Hall of Fame Gala
    • Top 25 Minority Leaders Gala (2022)
    • Top 25 Women Leaders Gala
  • Listen
    • Podcast - Next Up
    • Podcast - Beyond the Byline
    • Sponsored Podcast - Healthcare Insider
    • Video Series - The Check Up
    • Sponsored Video Series - One on One
    • Carter Dredge
      Next Up Podcast: Ready, set, innovate! Innovation and disruption in healthcare
      Next Up Podcast: COVID-19, social determinants highlight health inequities — what next?
      Next Up Podcast: Saving Rural Health
      Ceci Connolly
      Next Up Podcast: How to navigate the murky post-election waters
    • An older man wearing a mask receiving a vaccine.
      Beyond the Byline: Verifying information on the chaotic COVID-19 vaccine rollout
      doctor burnout
      Beyond the Byline: How healthcare supply chain struggles contribute to employee burnout
      Beyond the Byline: Covering race and diversity in the healthcare industry
      Beyond the Byline: How telehealth utilization has impacted investor-owned company earnings
    • Leading intention promote diversity and inclusion
      Introducing Healthcare Insider Podcast
    • The Check Up: Trenda Ray
      The Check Up: Trenda Ray of the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
      The Check Up: Dr. Kenneth Davis
      The Check Up: Dr. Kenneth Davis of Mount Sinai Health System
      The Check Up: Dr. Thomas McGinn
      The Check Up: Dr. Thomas McGinn of CommonSpirit Health
      The Check Up: Mark Ganz
      The Check Up: Mark Ganz of Cambia Health Solutions
    • Video: Ivana Naeymi Rad of Intelligent Medical Objects
  • MORE +
    • Advertise
    • Media Kit
    • Newsletters
    • Jobs
    • People on the Move
    • Reprints & Licensing
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. News
January 15, 1996 12:00 AM

THERE'S NO STOPPING MAINE TRUSTEE

Bruce Japsen
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Print

    The autumn chill was just starting to be felt late last September when employees at Down East Community Hospital in Machias, Maine, were celebrating at their annual picnic.

    There were many reasons for smiles: The hospital was completing another profitable year, it recently had finished a successful $650,000 capital campaign, and the new chief executive officer-Richard "Ric" Hanley-seemed friendly and open to new ideas.

    The celebration also offered a pleasant surprise.

    "I looked up and there she was," Hanley said. "My mouth dropped."

    The "she" was Carolyn Foster, president of the hospital's board of trustees.

    Despite having undergone major orthopedic surgery on an arthritic hand just a few days earlier, Foster was determined to attend the shindig.

    "It's not that Carol was wheelchair-bound, but it just shows that, for her, the hospital, its patients and employees come first," Hanley said.

    But some longtime Down East staffers knew it would take more than surgery for Foster to miss a hospital event.

    "If she was able to be upright, we knew she'd be there," said Lois Macias, Down East's director of support services and a 10-year employee of the 38-bed facility.

    It's that kind of dedication that helped earn Foster MODERN HEALTHCARE's Trustee of the Year award for hospitals and healthcare systems with fewer than 200 beds or revenues of less than $25 million.

    "I think it's really important for a hospital board and its members to be visible to employees, patients and the administration," Foster said.

    A member of Down East's board since 1988, Foster has served as president for the past four years. She retired in 1990 as a vice president of Machias Savings Bank.

    Active retirement. The 55-year-old Foster could choose to spend all her time in retirement as a church-going grandmother, but she keeps active on the hospital board because "it keeps me sharp and educated in more ways than you can possibly imagine." She added that "if one of my children is concerned about a sick grandchild, I can reassure them of the kind of healthcare they are going to get."

    But healthcare first became an important part of Foster's life shortly before she moved to Machias in 1984. Her father had been sick and was "in and out of hospitals" for many years.

    Her stepson also had been in a serious car accident in 1981, and the Down East physicians and staff helped save his life. She and her husband, Robert Foster, have three children each from previous marriages and nine grandchildren.

    "People looked at the hospital as just a stopover," Foster said. "But I knew it was more than that. That hospital is the only game in town out in a rural area like this."

    Machias is a rural community of nearly 1,800 people that relies on its healthcare system and a good blueberry harvest to maintain a strong local economy. Down East is the largest employer in the area, with 162 full-time employees, ranking just ahead of Maine Wild Blueberry Co., which has 115 employees year-round and 250 during the busy harvest season.

    In 1988, Foster was approached to serve on the hospital board. "About that time, all I did was church and my job," said Foster, an active member of the Hammond Street Congregational Church in Bangor, some 90 miles away. Little did she know that she was in for an education and some tough decisions.

    Years of struggle. The hospital had been suffering financially before 1988. For example, in 1986, it lost nearly $350,000 on $4.5 million in net operating revenues, and in 1987 lost $74,000 on $4.8 million in net revenues.

    In her first year on the board, the hospital hired Brentwood, Tenn.-based Quorum Health Group to provide management services. "It was a big step to go with an outside management company," Foster said. "And it was an important decision for the board. With a lot of folks around here, you get only one chance to make a good impression."

    The move proved successful. The hospital has been profitable every year since Quorum came on board.

    Quorum provides the chief executive officer and chief financial officer to the hospital in return for annual management fees of about $150,000.

    Down East also gets access to Quorum's purchasing power, as well as consulting and educational support from its national network of mostly rural hospitals.

    In 1994, Down East posted net income of $222,328 on net revenues of $10.2 million, according to HCIA, a Baltimore-based healthcare information company. The hospital has $7.7 million in assets.

    As a board activist, Foster has spearheaded a number of projects to help the hospital remain financially healthy. For example, she launched a capital campaign in 1991 that raised more than $650,000 to build a four-bed specialty-care unit. The goal of the four-year campaign was $500,000.

    The results were particularly impressive because 500 donors were from one of the most economically disadvantaged areas in Maine. In 1993, Washington County's median household income was among the poorest at $22,850 per household, compared with $32,155 for the state and $34,103 nationally.

    Foster's fund-raising skills also are used each year when she heads up the hospital's "Light A Life" program. Created in 1988, the program has raised more than $40,000 through $5 donations used to buy Christmas lights for the tree outside the hospital. The money raised is directed to a different patient-care program every year.

    Serving the community. The importance of serving the needs of the diverse community also has helped hone Foster's leadership skills.

    "In this part of the country, people are quite outspoken and parochial in their concerns," said Hanley, a native of Augusta, Maine, a "big city" by Machias standards.

    In addition to Machias, Down East serves 16 other towns, and its board reflects that by having 17 members drawn from throughout its market. At times it can be difficult to address the concerns and priorities of all board members and their localities.

    "Communication is the key," Foster said. "As a board, we'd rather hear about problems from (the CEO) than down at the `Shop-N-Save.'*"

    Foster has taken steps to ensure that board members stay on top of community issues and healthcare needs through regular educational seminars. New board members attend monthly educational meetings in addition to periodic seminars sponsored by Quorum and the Maine Hospital Association.

    "Carol has such fervor and is incredibly intense in what she does," Hanley said. "She can move from showing empathy for patients to rallying the board on a legislative issue."

    Foster's leadership efforts paid off last year when rural Maine hospitals and their boards successfully lobbied against a drastic change in the state's "tax and match" program. It requires hospitals to pay a 6% tax on gross patient service revenues, with the proceeds going to a pool used to obtain matching funds from the federal Medicaid program.

    However, the state wanted to continue the tax without continuing the same level of hospital funding. The original formula proposed by the state would have made Down East liable for $410,000 for this year, but the final recommendation is for $123,000. "It was a statewide effort by the Maine Hospital Association, and Carol was very involved in that," Hanley said.

    "We wrote a lot of letters and made a lot of phone calls," Foster said, an effort that's expected to save the hospital nearly $300,000.

    Foster also urged the creation of a physician recruitment committee made up of two hospital board members, an administrator and three physicians.

    "That committee is just as much for retention as it is for recruitment," Foster said.

    While many rural hospitals struggle to build a medical staff, Down East boasts 24 staff physicians-two-thirds of them in primary care. The physician mix includes a pediatrician, an obstetrician, orthopedic specialists, a urologist and a general surgeon.

    "Carol brings a good level of understanding and is sensitive to medical staff issues," said John Gaddis, D.O., a fellow board member who has been on Down East's medical staff since 1983. "Our board has helped attract a diverse group of physicians. A key element is that we are not all one of a kind."

    Preparing for managed care. It can be especially trying for a board member to explain the nuances of managed care as it penetrates rural America. Not unlike other rural areas, Washington County's managed-care penetration is less than 10%.

    While board members and healthcare executives across the country may not fully understand the roles their organizations will play in a managed-care environment, Foster is optimistic.

    "We have to be ready to try new things," Foster said.

    In October, Down East joined with nine other rural hospitals in northern and eastern parts of the state to form the Maine Health Alliance to help prepare for managed care.

    Foster sits on the alliance board as Down East's representative.

    "The alliance will contract with an HMO or a health plan, but we will be assured some degree of control," Foster said.

    She said physicians were concerned about losing market share and what kind of referral patterns the alliance would bring.

    "We provided physicians as well as the community with a lot of education," Foster said. "We told them we all had to rethink the way we do business. The whole reason for doing this is that united we stand or divided we fall."

    Letter
    to the
    Editor

    Send us a letter

    Have an opinion about this story? Click here to submit a Letter to the Editor, and we may publish it in print.

    Recommended for You
    Beyond the Byline: Mining data on insurers' pandemic profits - Transcript
    Beyond the Byline: Texas COPA law may pave the way for more hospital M&A - Transcript
    Sponsored Content
    Get Free Newsletters

    Sign up for free enewsletters and alerts to receive breaking news and in-depth coverage of healthcare events and trends, as they happen, right to your inbox.

    Subscribe Today

    The weekly magazine, websites, research and databases provide a powerful and all-encompassing industry presence. We help you make informed business decisions and lead your organizations to success.

    Subscribe
    Connect with Us
    • LinkedIn
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • RSS
    • Instagram

    Stay Connected

    Join the conversation with Modern Healthcare through our social media pages

    MDHC_Logotype_white
    Contact Us

    (877) 812-1581

    Email us

     

    Resources
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise with Us
    • Ad Choices Ad Choices
    • Sitemap
    Editorial Dept
    • Submission Guidelines
    • Code of Ethics
    • Awards
    • About Us
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    Modern Healthcare
    Copyright © 1996-2021. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • News
      • This Week's News
      • COVID-19
      • Providers
      • Insurance
      • Government
      • Finance
      • Technology
      • Safety & Quality
      • People
      • Regional News
        • Midwest
        • Northeast
        • South
        • West
      • Digital Edition
    • Insights
      • ACA 10 Years After
      • Best Practices
      • InDepth Special Reports
      • Innovations
    • Transformation
      • Patients
      • Operations
      • Care Delivery
      • Payment
    • Data/Lists
      • Rankings/Lists
      • Interactive Databases
      • Data Points
    • Op-Ed
      • Bold Moves
      • Breaking Bias
      • Commentaries
      • Letters
      • Vital Signs Blog
      • From the Editor
    • Awards
      • Award Programs
        • 100 Most Influential People
        • 50 Most Influential Clinical Executives
        • Best Places to Work in Healthcare
        • Health Care Hall of Fame
        • Healthcare Marketing Impact Awards
        • Top 25 Emerging Leaders
        • Top 25 Innovators
        • Top 25 Minority Leaders
        • Top 25 Women Leaders
      • Nominate
      • Previous Award Programs
        • Excellence in Nursing Awards
        • Design Awards
        • Top 25 COOs in Healthcare
      • Other Award Programs
        • 100 Top Hospitals
        • ACHE Awards
    • Events
      • Conferences
        • Leadership Symposium
        • Healthcare Transformation Summit
        • Women Leaders in Healthcare Conference
        • Workplace of the Future Conference
        • Strategic Marketing Conference
        • Social Determinants of Health Symposium
      • Galas
        • Best Places to Work Awards Gala
        • Health Care Hall of Fame Gala
        • Top 25 Minority Leaders Gala (2022)
        • Top 25 Women Leaders Gala
      • Webinars
      • COVID-19 Event Tracker
    • Listen
      • Podcast - Next Up
      • Podcast - Beyond the Byline
      • Sponsored Podcast - Healthcare Insider
      • Video Series - The Check Up
      • Sponsored Video Series - One on One
    • MORE +
      • Advertise
      • Media Kit
      • Newsletters
      • Jobs
      • People on the Move
      • Reprints & Licensing