Do we need 24-hour urgent care? Some hospitals offer both urgent care and emergency care, so that relatively minor injuries can be attended to quickly and cost effectively on a walk-in basis.

In the past, St. Andrews ER handled all walk-in cases, whether they were true emergencies or not. As you are all aware, since October 1, 2013, we no longer have a local ER. After 8 p.m., we don't have a walk-in clinic. The question for you, members of the community and seasonal residents and repeat visitors, is this: do you feel you need 24-hour urgent care?

Mary Mayhew, Commissioner of the Maine Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), has made the decision to reconsider Condition #3 of the Certificate of Need granted to LincolnHealth on May 27, 2014 (the condition that requires LH to maintain 24/7 Urgent Care on the St. Andrews Campus).

DHHS will conduct a hearing and "the scope of the hearing will be limited to reconsideration of the conditions based on new information not previously considered by the department regarding urgent care demands, and revenue and expenses of the urgent care center. After the close of the hearing, the hearing officer shall promptly forward the hearing record to the commissioner for consideration in rendering a decision."

If you are a member of this community and you want to keep 24/7 urgent care here at the St. Andrews Campus, we need your testimony.

Specifically, Commissioner Mayhew has asked for information "regarding urgent care demands" — if you needed services after 8 p.m. and they were closed, she should hear about it. If you were sick in the middle of the night and waited for the doors to open at 8 a.m., she needs to hear about it. Your experience is vital to having urgent care 24/7 at the St. Andrews Campus. Come to the hearing and tell your story. You will have 3 minutes.

All testimony needs to be submitted in writing and presented to the hearing official so the Commissioner can read it. The hearing will be held in the Boothbay Harbor Town Office on August 11 at 10 a.m. Please plan to arrive at 10 a.m. to sign in. There will be no break, so be sure to bring a bag lunch.

This hearing is about 24/7 urgent care. The Hearing Officer is explicit about limiting the testimony to the discussion of urgent care only. LincolnHealth is trying to introduce the subject of additional skilled beds in an effort to confuse the public. Remember — the need for skilled beds requires a completely different Certificate of Need process, which will take place in the near future. Let’s not cross that bridge until we get to it.

The foundation has been recognized by DHHS as a "person directly affected by a review" and as such, has been granted special intervener status so that we can present expert witnesses, cross examine, and have the right to appeal the Commissioner’s final decision if we are dissatisfied.

We are currently preparing for the hearing to present testimony and provide arguments. We have lost our hospital but the fight is far from over. The foundation continues, with the help of the community, to challenge LincolnHealth to not remove any more healthcare services from the peninsula.

The voice of the community is loud and clear. The foundation hears every day from people that: "We must convince them that they are not running a shoe store" and "They are healthcare providers — they are in the business of providing healthcare. Period." And, "They have dropped the word 'care' from Lincoln County Healthcare and are now just LincolnHealth. What message does this send to the community?”

Some local business owners have expressed and appreciate the fact that businesses need to make money.

A shoe store that is not making money, logically, will close its doors, but a hospital that is not making money closes its doors on its patients. Large corporations that are losing money eliminate highly paid mid-level executives through early retirement and other programs to balance their budgets. We have watched as our local healthcare business has docked the CNAs five percent of their pay, and the nurses lose earned time, as management continues to thrive.

So here is the challenge, LincolnHealth and Commissioner Mayhew: Provide urgent care 24/7 by staffing it in a financially responsible way. If you are going to run an ER, staff it as an ER; if you are going to run an urgent care, staff it as an urgent care. If you offer accessible, quality, affordable healthcare, they will come.

So we say to our friends and neighbors, come to the hearing and help us fight to keep the lights on at the St. Andrews Campus 24/7. Wouldn't it be comforting to know that if you are sick in the middle of the night you can be cared for — the lights will be on? And folks, we will take care of those skilled beds later. We will keep you posted. See you at the hearing. And thanks.

To contact the Boothbay Wellness Foundation for information, to receive our occasional e-letters, or to make a donation, visit www.boothbaywellness.org, mail to P.O. Box 335, Boothbay Harbor, ME 04538 or visit us on Facebook.