Area residents and healthcare providers are raising concerns about the future of Calais Community Hospital, with nearly a dozen staff, with all but two being medical providers, leaving in about seven months. Providers who either resigned or were fired say they were being micromanaged by administrators, who were interfering with clinical decisions they made. Area residents worry about the future of healthcare services in this part of the county, with some fearing they may have to move away to receive medical care.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s only one doctor left in the hospital itself,\u201d said Dr. Wendy Crawford, an orthopedic surgeon who left the hospital on April 30. \u201cIt\u2019s turning into like a ghost town.\u201d With the loss of providers, she said, \u201cThere\u2019s a big deficit in access to certain areas of care \u2014 general surgery, orthopedic surgery, family practice and podiatry.\u201d<\/p>\n
Of the actions by the hospital\u2019s administration, another physician, Dr. Jacqueline Russell, who left last fall, said, \u201cI have no idea what their plan is. It\u2019s like they want the hospital to close. I don\u2019t know what their purpose is. It seems dastardly.\u201d<\/p>\n
However, Steve Lail, CEO of the hospital, stated, \u201cWe want to reassure the community that Calais Community Hospital remains strongly committed to providing high\u2011quality, stable and accessible care for the people of Calais, Baileyville, Washington County and the surrounding region.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lail said that some of the recent provider changes were expected and part of the normal evolution of a healthcare organization. Others were part of the hospital administration\u2019s responsibility to evaluate quality, productivity, patient experience, teamwork and alignment with the needs of the hospital and community. \u201cWhile change can be difficult, especially in a small community where providers are well known, our obligation is to make decisions that strengthen patient care, improve access and position Calais Community Hospital for long\u2011term success,\u201d he said. \u201cIt is also important to emphasize that these changes are not simply losses. In many cases, they are creating the opportunity to bring in new providers, expand services and strengthen the overall medical staff.\u201d<\/p>\n
Providers see a dramatic change<\/p>\n
The difference in perspective between that of administrators and that of medical providers, though, is striking.<\/p>\n
Russell, a family practice doctor who had been working at the Calais Community Provider Practices office for more than two years, said that \u201ceverything changed so dramatically\u201d after a new person was hired on the administrative staff last year. She says administrators began interfering with clinical decisions and \u201cwanted more patients to go through.\u201d While Russell had been seeing 16 patients a day for 30 minutes each, she was told to see 20 a day for 20 minutes each. \u201cThat\u2019s a huge difference,\u201d she said. While clinics in some parts of the country may have those rates, Russell said that pace will not work in rural Maine, where there are more limited resources and older patients with more complicated medical issues.<\/p>\n
Although she worked at the new pace for four or five months, she did not want to keep that up. Administrators, though, \u201cwould not bend,\u201d so she gave her 90-day notice and then was fired in October.<\/p>\n
She had been seeing about 1,000 patients, and she said that administrators told them she had left the area, leaving them in the lurch. When word got out she had actually been hired at St. Croix Regional Family Health Center in Princeton, she said about 500 patients switched over.<\/p>\n
Of the administration, Russell said there was \u201cmicromanagement and interference with patient care. They want to get as much as they can out of you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe had a really good team going and helped a lot of patients. It was really smooth, and they just disrupted that.\u201d<\/p>\n
For area residents, they may now have to drive to Bangor for some of their healthcare needs. \u201cA lot of people don\u2019t want to go to the Calais hospital,\u201d she said. \u201cThey\u2019ve done this to so many physicians over the years. They\u2019ve pushed out a lot of good physicians.\u201d<\/p>\n
Whether some people will now leave the area because of concerns about the quality of healthcare, she said, \u201cThey won\u2019t move. They\u2019ll just suffer.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe people who are here, they don\u2019t want to move. They\u2019ll go farther for their healthcare, if they can,\u201d she said. \u201cIf you\u2019re housebound, it\u2019s really difficult.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI hope it gets better,\u201d she said. \u201cI hope they fire a couple of people and the whole climate changes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Among those who have left is Dr. Thomas Crosslin, a general surgeon who had been working full time at the hospital since 2024 before leaving in January. \u201cDr. Crosslin was one of the most loved surgeons,\u201d Russell said. \u201cHe is a great physician, very empathetic, and they just pushed him out.\u201d<\/p>\n
Crosslin said, \u201cI was fortunate to form trusting professional relationships with my clinical colleagues in Calais.\u201d With the loss of staff, he says is concerned about \u201cthe ongoing well-being of my patients, colleagues, neighbors, friends and those who adopted me into their families. My hometown hospital down south suffered a similar administrative situation many years ago, and the loss of critical services and trusted staff left a cratering impact on the community. I hope Calais can avoid the same fate.\u201d<\/p>\n
As for the quality of healthcare in the area following the loss of providers at the Calais hospital, he said, \u201cI think the folks over at St. Croix Regional pulled off a tremendously smart move for the greater community when they recruited and hired Dr. Russell and Dr. Moghaddas, along with critical members of their clinical staff. Both of those physicians, as well as their nurses and medical assistants, are truly superb at what they do, and they are very well\u2011regarded by their patients. So keeping their professional talent in the area serves to fortify both primary care and podiatry services, and it strengthens an already highly rated clinical enterprise in Princeton.\u201d<\/p>\n
Community may lose confidence<\/p>\n
Crawford, who has more than 18 years of experience as an orthopedic surgeon and worked at the hospital for a year and a half before resigning, said that during her first year \u201cI was so proud of the program being grown.\u201d The joint replacement program \u201cwas technologically the most advanced in the state of Maine.\u201d However, late last year \u201cthere was a significant change\u201d at the hospital. Her first assistant, who had the institutional knowledge of the operating room, retired but was never replaced. \u201cIt was a big loss,\u201d she said. \u201cIt made it so the program turned 180 degrees from what it was.\u201d Crosslin then left, and the operating room \u201cteam started to become significantly weaker. People have been resigning or were being fired one by one.\u201d<\/p>\n
The chief nursing officer, who was in charge of running the program, lost his job, and her medical assistant, \u201cwho was fantastic,\u201d was fired, but Crawford said she was not kept in the loop about her leaving.<\/p>\n
Concerning the operating room team, she says, \u201cThey had a great attitude, but they were put in positions that were unfair, so there was a great deal of frustration.\u201d When she first came to the hospital, \u201cPeople were super focused on providing the best quality of care to the patients. But they became frustrated by loss of access to supportive staff and ancillary services. Their frustration was because they were seeing resources disappear.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were getting to the point where people were having a lot of confidence in the hospital,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s a great hospital. But right now, with the vast amount of turnover that has happened, the community is losing confidence in the quality of care. That\u2019s a hard, hard thing to turn around. It can take years.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are great people working there, but they need the support\u201d from the hospital administration, she said. \u201cI don\u2019t know why the administration makes the decisions they do. I hope they make their decisions in the best interests of the hospital and the community,\u201d she stated, adding that she wishes there was more transparency by the administration about their decisions.<\/p>\n
Investments to strengthen staff and services outlined<\/p>\n
CEO Steve Lail, though, pointed to many actions that the administration is taking to strengthen the staff. \u201cWe are very pleased that Dr. Aziz Massaad, a highly respected and very busy general surgeon who has served the region for many years at Down East Community Hospital, will be relocating his practice to Calais Community Hospital beginning in September 2026.\u201d He said that Massaad has \u201can outstanding reputation for quality, experience, professionalism and service to patients across Washington County.\u201d In addition, Dr. Rita Ten, a pain medicine specialist and anesthesiologist, will also be relocating her practice to Calais. \u201cThis will further strengthen specialty services available locally and create new opportunities for patients to receive care closer to home,\u201d Lail said.<\/p>\n
The hospital also has hired Dr. Vikal Singh, a surgical podiatrist, who is expected to begin this summer. \u201cDr. Vikal Singh will expand the hospital\u2019s surgical services and bring capabilities that were not previously available through the former podiatry practice,\u201d Lail stated. \u201cThis is an example of how provider transitions can allow us to enhance the level of care available to the community.\u201d<\/p>\n
As for primary care, Dr. Susan Luthin, a family practice physician, has joined the hospital\u2019s new Baileyville clinic; Logan Raye, a family nurse practitioner, is serving patients in Calais; and Kayli Doten, a family nurse practitioner, is serving patients in Baileyville. Interviews are planned for this summer for family practice physicians and nurse practitioners.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese provider recruitment efforts are part of a much larger investment strategy for Calais Community Hospital and the communities we serve,\u201d Lail stated. Last fall, the hospital opened the new Baileyville clinic, \u201ca major step forward in improving access to primary care and local healthcare services for the Baileyville area and surrounding communities.\u201d In addition to the $1.35 million in federal funding for that project, the hospital was awarded $4.9 million to remodel and expand its rural health clinic on the hospital campus, which Lail said will \u201cexpand capacity, support future provider recruitment and strengthen primary care access in Calais for years to come.\u201d<\/p>\n
He pointed out that the Calais hospital has also made significant investments in its employees, having increased salaries for many, with some employees seeing wage increases of up to 45%. \u201cThis reflects our commitment to making Calais Community Hospital a stronger, more competitive and more supportive place to work.\u201d<\/p>\n
The hospital also restarted its employer contribution for its 403(b) retirement plan and in the fall provided bonuses to employees for their hard work and dedication. Staff appreciation events are held throughout the year.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese investments matter,\u201d the hospital\u2019s CEO stated. \u201cA hospital is not defined only by its buildings, equipment or providers. It is defined by the people who care for patients every day \u2014 nurses, technicians, medical assistants, therapists, registration staff, environmental services staff, dietary staff, maintenance staff, providers, managers and many others. Strengthening the hospital means investing in those people, improving the work environment and building a culture focused on accountability, teamwork, quality and patient service.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lail commented, \u201cTaken together, these efforts represent a clear vote of confidence in the future of Calais Community Hospital. We are not reducing our commitment to the community \u2014 we are expanding it. We are investing in new facilities, recruiting new providers, strengthening surgical and specialty services, rebuilding primary care access and supporting the employees who serve our patients every day.\u201d<\/p>\n
He added, \u201cCalais Community Hospital is not stepping backward. We are rebuilding and strengthening key areas of care. We are focused on improving quality, expanding services, increasing patient volume, investing in our workforce and creating a stronger, more sustainable hospital for the future.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Area residents and healthcare providers are raising concerns about the future of Calais Community Hospital, with nearly a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":638395,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[59],"tags":[275632,97,252,253],"class_list":["post-638394","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-health-care","tag-calais-regional-hospital","tag-health","tag-health-care","tag-healthcare"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/638394","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=638394"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/638394\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/638395"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=638394"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=638394"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=638394"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}