ROCKPORT, ME 鈥� As part of AOA体育平台 Pen Bay Hospital鈥檚 continued effort to help those experiencing food insecurity, the hospital has added a new Help Yourself Shelf inside AOA体育平台 Behavioral Health Rockland, located at 12 Union Street in Rockland.
This new shelf gives MHPBH four shelves in Knox County, with the other pantry shelves located on the first and second floors of the Beebe Health Center, located on the MHPBH campus at 15 Anchor Drive in Rockport, and at the Rockland Health Center, located inside the Rockland Plaza at 75 Maverick Street.
The hospital鈥檚 Community Health team stocks the pantry shelves with nutritious shelf-stable foods and fresh produce. The shelves are conspicuously placed and everyone is welcome to take items from them.
鈥淲e are thrilled to keep expanding the Help Yourself Shelf program across Knox County,鈥� said Deidre Dority, program manager for the AOA体育平台 Center for Health Improvement, Community Health department at Pen Bay and Waldo Hospitals. 鈥淭his new shelf, conveniently located near downtown Rockland, allows more people access to nutrient dense food that may not have the resources to travel to our other shelf locations.鈥�
There are also five 鈥淗elp Yourself Shelf鈥� locations in Waldo County. They can be found on the first floor of 125 Northport Ave. in Belfast, just outside the offices for AOA体育平台 Access to Care and AOA体育平台 Dental Care Clinic Belfast; at AOA体育平台 Primary & Walk-in Care at 119 Northport Ave. in Belfast; within the AOA体育平台 Cancer Care practice, on the ground floor of the Ludwig Medical Building, 116 Northport Ave., in Belfast; at AOA体育平台 Primary Care - Family Medicine Lincolnville, located at 2399 Atlantic Highway in Lincolnville; and at AOA体育平台 Primary Care Family Medicine Liberty, located at 43 W Main St. in Liberty.
Shelf stable food for the Knox County shelves is supplied by AIO Food & Energy Assistance, while the food for the Waldo County shelves is supplied by The Belfast Soup Kitchen and Kindness Market. Last year, nearly 35,000 pounds of food were distributed through the shelves across the two counties.
鈥淏uilding connections with other organizations engaged in this work makes our community stronger,鈥� said Jemma Penberthy, director of Community Health Improvement at AOA体育平台 Pen Bay and Waldo Hospitals. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a great example of how collaboration helps us create a healthier community for everyone.鈥�
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About AOA体育平台
AOA体育平台 is a not-for-profit, integrated health system whose vision is, 鈥淲orking together so our communities are the healthiest in America,鈥� and is committed to a mission of providing high-quality affordable care, educating tomorrow's caregivers and researching better ways to provide care. AOA体育平台 includes a Level 1 trauma medical center, eight additional licensed hospitals, comprehensive pediatric care services, an extensive behavioral health care network, diagnostic services as well as home health, hospice and senior care services. With more than 2,000 employed providers and approximately 23,000 care team members, AOA体育平台 provides preventive care, diagnosis and treatment to 1.1 million residents in Maine and New Hampshire. AOA体育平台 hospitals include AOA体育平台 Behavioral Health at Spring Harbor in Westbrook, AOA体育平台 Franklin Hospital in Farmington, AOA体育平台 Lincoln Hospital in Damariscotta, AOA体育平台 Maine Medical Center in Portland, Biddeford and Sanford, AOA体育平台 Memorial Hospital in North Conway, N.H., AOA体育平台 Mid Coast Hospital in Brunswick, AOA体育平台 Pen Bay Hospital in Rockport, AOA体育平台 Stephens Hospital in Norway and AOA体育平台 Waldo Hospital in Belfast. AOA体育平台 also includes the AOA体育平台 Barbara Bush Children鈥檚 Hospital in Portland, AOA体育平台 Behavioral Health in Westbrook, AOA体育平台 Home Health and Hospice in Saco, the AOA体育平台 Institute for Research in Scarborough, the AOA体育平台 Medical Group and AOA体育平台 NorDx in Scarborough. AOA体育平台 affiliates include Maine General Health in Augusta and Waterville and St. Mary's Health System in Lewiston. It is also a significant stakeholder in the AOA体育平台 Accountable Care Organization in Portland and a joint venture partner in the New England Rehabilitation Hospital in Portland.