Mobile health team promotes wellness, addresses substance abuse disorders in rural Maine

MaineHealth Community Health Farmington, which includes MaineHealth Franklin Hospital, offers health and wellness services and education focused on disease prevention to communities in rural Franklin County. Its mobile health outreach team conducts health screenings, administers flu shots and does blood pressure checks and body composition analysis. The team also provides guidance on accessing health care, insurance and food resources. 

Also offered as part of this comprehensive health and wellness program are harm reduction services, available for individuals with substance use disorders. Harm reduction is a public health strategy focused on engaging directly with people who use drugs. It includes distributing naloxone (an opioid overdose reversal drug), HIV and hepatitis at-home testing kits, wound care supplies, fentanyl test strips, and safer sex materials. This approach helps prevent overdoses and improve each person’s physical, mental and social well-being, with an emphasis on building relationships and connecting individuals to support services. Evidence supports that harm reduction contributes to safer, healthier communities by addressing immediate risks while supporting long-term recovery readiness. 

The mobile outreach unit is part of the Healthy Community Coalition, whose mission is to improve the health and quality of life of people in greater Franklin County.

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