Coulombe Center for Health Improvement | MaineHealth Lincoln Hospital

Some of our community partners include:

• Local schools and civic organizations
• Boothbay Region Community Resource Council
• Boothbay Region YMCA
• Central Lincoln County YMCA
• Healthy Lincoln County
• Law enforcement
• MaineHealth Lincoln Hospital physicians, nurses and administration
• MaineHealth Behavioral Health
• National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Maine

The MaineHealth Coulombe Center works to improve the emotional health and well-being of community members and ensure they have the necessary skills to bounce back from hardship and everyday challenges of modern life. 

We make behavioral health services easily accessible by high school students by funding two part-time integrated behavioral health clinicians at Lincoln Academy and the Boothbay Region High School. 

We also provide mindfulness and resilience training opportunities close to home. Our evidence-based mindfulness trainings, help improve overall health and well-being at significantly reduced rates. Trainings have targeted those who will have the most direct impact on the community, including doctors and other health care professionals, teachers and education staff. Training opportunities have also been made available for parents and community members.

Recent Mindfulness Trainings:

• Cultivating Resilience: The Heart and Science of Well-Being for Healthcare Professionals, daylong workshop
• Six-Week Mindfulness in Education Course: Open to teachers and education staff in Lincoln County
• Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction Course: Open to Community Members
• Mindful Technology Use: For parents and legal guardians in Lincoln County

We also fund a Survivors of Suicide Support Group that helps community members who are grieving the loss of a loved one. We partnered with a local therapist, who specializes in grief, to offer this six-week support group periodically throughout the year, free of charge. 

Food security and access to resources for vulnerable populations has been a focus area for the Coulombe Center since its inception. Our earliest project brought the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Summer Meals program to the Boothbay Region in the summer of 2015. Under the leadership of another local non-profit, the program continues to thrive as our partner, with Coulombe Center staff providing support and guidance. 

The Coulombe Center continues to help increase amount of community members who have access to USDA food and nutrition programs by encouraging applications to these programs. 
 

The MaineHealth Coulombe Center has played a vital role in increasing local access to medication for opioid use disorder (MOUD). 

• Increasing the number of providers in Lincoln County who offer MOUD as a service
• Providing stigma training to MaineHealth Lincoln Hospital care team and community members
• Helping the MaineHealth Lincoln Hospital emergency department become a starting point for people seeking substance use disorder treatment

This work has been done in collaboration with dedicated community members and groups, including the Boothbay Region Community Resource Council, the Lincoln County Recovery Collaborative, local law enforcement, MaineHealth Lincoln Hospital doctors, leaders and clinicians; and concerned community members.

The MaineHealth Coulombe Center Award for Innovation was created in 2018 to highlight community partner organizations who are doing innovative work within Lincoln County. The selected organizations provide services or perform activities that align with the mission of the MaineHealth Coulombe Center for Health Improvement and look to improve the health of those living and working in Lincoln County. Award winners are honored at a recognition event each spring and receive funds to help further develop their program. 

Past Award Recipients

• Megan Taft and Sara Cawthon, Co-Founders, Twin Village Food Bank Farm
• Haley Bezon, Founder, Hearty Roots

Nominations are accepted through April 15 of each year. View the nomination form.