Community Conversations with North Country Healthcare

Thank you.  

To the more than 300 community members who joined us across Jefferson, Berlin, Lancaster, Bethlehem, and Colebrook, and to those who submitted questions in advance, thank you. The time, honesty, and care people brought to these conversations made one thing very clear: our communities are deeply invested in the future of local healthcare. We see that as a strength.

Earlier this year, North Country Healthcare hosted Community Conversations across the North Country as dedicated listening spaces. These were not presentations or decision-making meetings. They were opportunities to hear directly from patients, staff, partners, and neighbors about their experiences with local healthcare and with North Country Healthcare through guided discussion. The conversations were candid and, at times, emotional. We heard concerns about access, staffing, communication, finances, local services, and change. We also heard pride in our local hospitals, deep appreciation for frontline caregivers, and a shared desire to keep healthcare strong and close to home. What stood out most was how much people care.

To support this process, we partnered with New Hampshire Listens at the Carsey School of Public Policy at the University of New Hampshire because of their expertise in structured public dialogue and balanced facilitation. Their NH Listens report provides an independent summary of the themes shared across the sessions. Alongside that work, North Country Healthcare prepared this Community Conversations: What We Heard report to reflect the questions raised, share information in response, and communicate more clearly about what we heard, what we can answer today, and where work is still ongoing.

Because these conversations mattered, we wanted to respond with care and transparency. Our response is longer than a typical summary because the questions we received were thoughtful, specific, and important. People did not show up with surface-level concerns. They asked meaningful questions about the future of healthcare in the North Country, and that level of engagement deserves more than a short recap. It deserves a real response.

  The questions included here were asked in many different ways, but we have grouped them by theme to provide clearer, more complete responses and to help community members see their words and priorities reflected in this work. Our goal is not only to answer questions, but also to show how seriously we take the perspectives shared with us.

Listening does not end when the chairs are folded up. Leadership teams are actively reviewing what we heard, identifying patterns, and discussing next steps. These conversations help us understand where we need to do better, where we need to explain things more clearly, and where we need to keep listening.

As part of this broader effort, North Country Healthcare is also moving forward with several additional opportunities for engagement. The Patient & Family Advisory Council, or PFAC, is now recruiting members and will serve as a structured partnership between patients, families, and hospital leadership to help strengthen care experience, safety, communication, and trust across our hospitals and North Country Home Health & Hospice Agency. Those interested in being considered, or anyone wishing to recommend a potential participant, may email [email protected].

North Country Healthcare will also host a series of Open Houses in May, offering community members an opportunity to meet leaders, tour facilities, and learn more about our work. Open Houses are scheduled for Monday, May 11 at Androscoggin Valley Hospital, Tuesday, May 12 at Weeks Medical Center, and Thursday, May 14 at Upper Connecticut Valley Hospital, with each event taking place from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

A second round of Community Conversations has also been officially scheduled for June, with sessions planned for:

• Thursday, June 18 from 9am t0 11am, at Upper Connecticut Valley Hospital, Colebrook
• Monday, June 22 Virtual Opportunity (please pre-register for link) from 5:30pm to 6:30pm
• Tuesday, June 23 from 5:30pm to 7:30pm, at St. Kieran for the Arts, Berlin
• Wednesday, June 24 from 11am to 1pm, at Weeks Medical Center, Lancaster.

More details will be announced soon. A third round of conversations is tentatively planned for October.

We also want to be clear about our commitment. North Country Healthcare was built on the belief that our hospitals and services are stronger together. Our goal remains to keep each of our hospitals, as well as our home health and hospice services, open, strong, and providing excellent, integrated care close to home. That work requires discipline, transparency, and long-term planning, especially in a rural healthcare environment facing workforce shortages, financial pressures, and increasing complexity. It also requires partnership.

The Community Conversations reminded us that the North Country cares deeply about its healthcare system. That shared commitment is something to build on. We are grateful for this level of engagement, and we hope it continues. Please keep joining us, keep asking questions, and keep sharing your perspective. Strong rural healthcare depends on strong relationships, and that means staying in conversation with one another.

If you feel something has not been answered, or if additional questions arise, please reach out to us at [email protected]. We look forward to continuing this work together and strengthening the health of our communities.