Partnership will expand behavioral health services in Androscoggin County

Courtesy / St. Mary’s Health System St. Mary’s Health System, headquartered in Lewiston, has signed an agreement that will expand community health services.

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By Alexis Wells

St. Mary's Health System has partnered with a Baltimore provider to expand behavioral health services in Androscoggin County.

Sheppard Pratt Solutions is a Baltimore-based nonprofit that provides mental health, substance use, developmental disability, special education and social services. It partners with hospitals and health care systems.

As part of the St. Mary's partnership, Sheppard Pratt has hired Michael Abbatiello as the new vice president of behavioral health for St. Mary's Health System, based in Lewiston. He previously served as senior vice president of operations and chief financial officer for Sweetser and Maine Behavioral Healthcare.

The agreement will give employees of St. Mary's Health System, which serves Androscoggin County, access to Sheppard Pratt's resources, including professional education and experts for consultations and specialty services.

Steve Jorgensen, St. Mary's Health System president, said by partnering with the Baltimore nonprofit "we build on our reputation of excellence and provide the very best in behavioral healthcare for our patients."

"The need for behavioral health services is tremendous and that need is felt in every community across the nation," said Harsh K. Trivedi, president and CEO of Sheppard Pratt. "Sheppard Pratt Solutions offers the ability for health systems to address local community needs by partnering with a national leader who shares a commitment to providing high-quality, evidence-based, compassionate behavioral health services."

St. Mary’s Health System, a member of Covenant Health, was founded in 1888 by the Sisters of Charity of Saint-Hyacinthe. Today, it is a medical system comprising a 233-bed community hospital, a group of primary care and specialty providers, urgent care and an emergency department.

St. Mary's Health System was ranked No. 4 in the Mainebiz 2023 Book of Lists by the number of licensed acute care beds.