Aroostook Mental Health Services Inc. has been awarded $651,900 through Maine’s Rural Health Transformation Program to strengthen technology, infrastructure, data capacity and cybersecurity across its Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic operations.
The funding will support a broad modernization effort designed to improve service delivery, enhance clinical quality, strengthen data-driven decision making, and protect sensitive health information for thousands of individuals receiving behavioral health services throughout Aroostook, Hancock and Washington counties.
“Behavioral health care today depends on more than skilled clinicians,” Christy Daggett, chief executive officer of AMHC, said. “It requires strong technology, reliable data, secure systems, and the ability to continuously measure and improve outcomes. This investment allows us to build that foundation while supporting our workforce and strengthening the services people across rural Maine rely upon every day.”
The award will fund new leadership and technical expertise in data analytics and cybersecurity, while supporting several major agency-wide initiatives, including:
Enhanced medication monitoring and measurement-based care tools;
Continued optimization of AMHC’s electronic health record system;
A modernized telephone and call-management platform to improve client access and responsiveness;
Expanded AI-assisted clinical documentation technology that will reduce administrative burden and allow clinicians to spend more time focused on client care.
Artificial intelligence tools funded through the project will be used solely to assist with documentation and administrative functions. They will not diagnose clients, make treatment decisions, or independently communicate with patients. The organization will continue to comply with Maine law and all applicable regulations governing the use of artificial intelligence in health care settings.
“This award strengthens nearly every aspect of our organization,” Daggett said. “From cybersecurity and data analytics to clinical quality and client access, these investments will help ensure that people living in rural communities have access to the same high-quality systems and services available anywhere else.”
Maine’s Rural Health Transformation Program is supported by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services as part of a financial assistance award totaling $190,008,051.09 with 100% funded by CMS/HHS. The contents of this release are those of AMHC and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement, by CMS/HHS or the U.S. Government.
