🔒Peter Van Allen: Meeting the challenges

Like most states, Maine is navigating the world of healthcare and the global economy.

Yet Maine faces challenges that are in many ways unique.

In the Healthcare & Wellness focus section, Mainebiz writers explore several topics that affect not only the medical community and consumers, but businesses as well.

As Senior Writer Lori Valigra shows in her story, “Help Wanted," the shortage of nurses has been well documented (see story here). But not as much is known about the shortage of dentists. At present, Maine has 600 dentists and, like the state's population as a whole, the demographic is skewing older. Two-thirds of Maine's dentists are over the age of 50 and a third are over 60. Rural areas, in particular, struggle to attract and hold onto qualified dentists. As one source in the story points out, it would take a decade to replace the current roster of dentists. But hope is being raised by some new ventures, including a new dental school. Lori's story looks at programs that could serve as a pipeline of new dentists. She also talks to dentists who have made the move to Maine, including a California native who came to the Pine Tree State by way of Massachusetts.

Another story by Senior Writer James McCarthy looks at a new initiative to head off medical problems before they become serious (see story here). Starting on the cover, “Patient-centered medical homes” explores a five-year pilot program funded by medical insurers and the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services that is testing a team-based approach to care, improved communication and better preventive care, while reducing unnecessary spending. As Jim points out, such front- end healthcare has the potential of taking business, if you will, from the hospitals. But hospital administrators he talked to praised the programs, saying they serve a valuable role in helping people stay healthy.

While this issue includes a focus on Healthcare & Wellness, it is not limited to that.

Douglas Rooks, a Mainebiz contributor with extensive reporting experience, takes a detailed look at overseas trade missions (see story here). Such trips come under the heading of economic development and as such don't always have a tangible return on investment. With upcoming trips planned for Iceland and the United Kingdom, Doug takes a look at the success rate for past missions. As he points out in his page 14 story “Report card,” there's no definitive report card. After a lull during the recession, trade missions from the state of Maine have climbed back up to levels unseen since 2007. Sales volume has grown, particularly around trade in the pulp-and-paper industry, but measuring ROI for missions focused on biotech and health products is a bit trickier.

Doug brings the story alive with his case example of Eimskip, an Icelandic shipping concern now doing business through the Port of Portland. In its first year in Portland, it has increased its volume of imports from a value of $200,000 to $4.3 million. An executive with the company says he sees cultural similarities between Maine and its other core markets, including Newfoundland, Scandinavia and the Faroe Islands.

“We are all hardworking people, scarred by the elements, with maritime in our blood,” the executive, Larus Isfeld, told Doug.

Even if you, like me, sit in a cubicle or comfy office all day, you can take pride in that comparison.