Dear Editor:

We have a community that is top heavy in elderly people. The rest of the population works in various walks of life from Bath Iron Works, to the lobster and fishing industry. We are letting our community down with the poor result that the save St. Andrews task force has gotten thus far.

The task force is all pomp and circumstance and in it for show. It's letting the citizens of this area down in major fashion.

This hospital needs to reassert its independent status and break away from Lincoln County Healthcare, the way it was when Dr. Gregory founded it years ago.

Boothbay Harbor is not about large corporate management. It is more about the “how can we best help you” mentality, which is what is lost by the LCH merger.

St. Andrews Hospital needs to be a full service facility, meaning surgery, and follow-up, and a full emergency service 24 hours as we have now, and a staff of doctors that are dedicated to our community in every way.

We just need to get our independent status again and disband the “Save St. Andrews Hospital” group. We don't need a showboat committee to tell us that it is going to happen or not; we need to take this bull by the horns and make it happen.

I believe that when that gentleman stood up at the end of the only meeting I attended and asked, “What is the purpose of the hospital, to help people or to make money?” speaks volumes to describe the feeling of helplessness this community is sensing.

We must save the hospital, whether or not they decide on a hospital to be built somewhere between Edgecomb and Newcastle. My contention will stand that they should break from Lincoln County Healthcare and form their own entity, and increase the services of the hospital as a whole while they negotiate for a new satellite somewhere on Route 1. That way “people,” not “pocketbooks” will again be the reason that St. Andrews exists as it always has been.

Kenneth Chances
Boothbay