
FORT FAIRFIELD, Maine — Northern Light AR Gould Hospital wants the community to know about an upcoming change in location for two of its practices. Sleep diagnostics and pulmonology, both currently located on the hospital campus, will be moving to the Northern Light Health Center in Fort Fairfield.
“We know this move will take a little adjusting to, for staff as well as patients; however, we feel it is necessary as it supports our goal of combining Sleep Medicine and Pulmonology services. The move of these specialists to Fort Fairfield offers the best use of existing space for this team to work from the same clinic and best serve our community,” says Rob Rogers, manager of both practices. “There is great space available at the Northern Light Health Center in Fort Fairfield, a space which has been renovated for our needs with improved amenities and easier access.”
The Sleep Diagnostics practice offers care with three providers: Bredon Crawford, MD; Neil Baggesen, PA-C; and Megan Ruest, FNP. They see patients for a variety of potential sleep disorders, including sleep apnea, insomnia, restless leg syndrome and narcolepsy. The outpatient practice space, where patients have appointments with these providers, is moving to the Fort Fairfield location.
Sleep Diagnostics also includes a sleep lab where sleep studies are conducted, most commonly overnight. On rare occasions sleep studies take place during the day to accommodate patients who work nights and sleep during the day. The sleep lab will remain in the hospital. The pickup and drop-off of home sleep apnea testing equipment will also continue to be available at the hospital campus
The arrival of pulmonologist Robert Aranson, MD in March led to the reopening of the pulmonology service at AR Gould after a temporary pause. Dr. Aranson treats patients with a wide variety of pulmonary conditions, from the common, such as asthma and pneumonia, to the more unique, such as cystic fibrosis in adults. Procedures offered under his care include bronchoscopies, thoracentesis, pleural biopsies, and screenings for pulmonary hypertension. Outpatient visits will move to Fort Fairfield; however, certain testing and procedures will continue to happen at the hospital, such as pulmonary function tests.
The combining of the sleep diagnostics and pulmonology clinics is a positive move for our community, according to Rogers.
“Pulmonology and sleep medicine are both strongly intertwined with our respiratory system. Breathing-related sleep disorders vary over a range of conditions, particularly snoring and sleep apnea. There are also similarities in diagnosis testing that both of these specialties refer our patients to, such as home sleep studies,” explains Rogers.
“All appointments scheduled on or after June 23 will be held at our new Fort Fairfield location, so anyone with an already scheduled appointment should plan to go the Health Center, which is located at 23 High St.,” says Rogers. “We look forward to continuing to serve our patients at our new location.”
The Northern Light Health Center in Fort Fairfield is already home to one of the hospital’s primary care practices. This is not the first time the hospital has offered specialty care services at the location alongside the primary care services. Past instances include behavioral health, endocrinology and diabetes education.