Maine Family Planning is now offering primary care services at its clinics in Houlton and Presque Isle, expanding health care options for Aroostook County residents.
Heather Curran, FNP-BC, is expanding her role at MFP to include primary care after serving as a part-time family planning provider for several years. Curran has worked in health care in Aroostook County for almost 20 years, and as a board certified family nurse practitioner since 2015. Born and raised in the County, Curran is passionate about providing quality care for the communities she grew up in and is excited about the possibilities at MFP.
“I’m excited to build a primary care practice at MFP with time built in to focus on your concerns. Maine Family Planning is a small practice where patients are really treated as individuals, and there’s a high level of accessibility – like you call our office and a person picks up the phone, not a recording. I love that, and I know my neighbors here in the County appreciate that, too,” said Curran. “I feel like there are a lot of questions that people need answered. We serve all income levels, take all kinds of insurance, and we have a sliding fee scale for self-pay patients. And we’re not just for women! We see patients of all genders, ages 12 and up.”
The decision to expand services to include primary care was driven by a variety of factors according to Maine Family Planning’s senior vice president of program services, Evelyn Kieltyka, FNP-BC. “We had been a part of several Aroostook County community needs assessments over the last decade that pointed to the need for additional health care options, and we were also hearing directly from our patients and from our patient advisory board. So when Heather and I began to discuss offering primary care, it just made sense for so many reasons.”
Primary care appointments will be available at Maine Family Planning in Presque Isle on Mondays and Fridays, with Tuesday and Thursday reserved for family planning care. In Houlton, primary care appointments will be available on Tuesdays, and Thursdays will remain focused on family planning. Regional Manager Melissa Gray stressed that both clinics are committed to flexibility and will work with patients to find appointments that work for their schedules.
Patients who are interested in scheduling or who want to find out more should contact the clinics directly. Maine Family Planning & Primary Care can be contacted at 207-760-4291 in Presque Isle, or 207-254-4042 in Houlton.
Maine Family Planning is a statewide, 501c3 nonprofit health care organization founded in 1971, with 18 independent clinics offering patients affordable, comprehensive sexual and reproductive health care services. MFP also oversees a comprehensive prevention education program working with schools and youth-serving agencies throughout the state and administers family support programs Maine Families (in Hancock County) and WIC (in Washington and Hancock counties). Learn more at www.mainefamilyplanning.org.
