By Wayne E. Rivet

Staff Writer

Growing up, Peter Wright’s mother owned a coffee shop in New Jersey. One lesson he learned was, “It’s all about people.”

Wright has applied that lesson to his role as president of Bridgton and Rumford Hospitals.

“We are people taking care of people. We don’t take care of patients, we take care of our friends, neighbors and our relatives. I think that’s what makes the mission at Bridgton Hospital so special and why it is so personal. Our staff, you know them. You see them on the street, the soccer field and at Hannaford. That’s why I chose to come to a place like this. It’s why I haven’t gone to large, academic medical centers. I don’t want to get lost and I don’t want to lose sight of what is important — the patients,” Wright told a packed room at Campfire Grille Tuesday morning as the guest speaker of a Meet & Greet sponsored by the Greater Bridgton Lakes Region Chamber of Commerce. “There are plenty of options to get healthcare. Patients choose to come to Bridgton Hospital. So, my mission is to create an environment at Bridgton where our staff get up every day and can’t wait to come to work just like me, and actively choose to come to Bridgton because it’s the kind of place they can make a difference.”

Wright said accepting the job as BH president was “a really easy decision for me. We have an incredible staff here and some great professionals.”

Wright has been involved in healthcare for 18 years, strictly with critical care hospitals in very small communities in New Hampshire and Vermont.

“I truly understand what northern New England life is like,” he said.

He and his wife, Karen (who is a nurse at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in New Hampshire), have a home in Winthrop, and have a “blended family” that includes four children between the ages of 18 to 29. The Wrights also have a grandchild.

As to his background, Wright gave the audience a quick timeline which included attending Lyndon State College (where his uncle went to school) and working in the ski resort business as well as a law enforcement officer for 6½ years. He moved on to work with Littleton Coin Co. as a buyer in the marketing department. During this time, a friend “dragged” Wright into healthcare.

It proved to be a great career choice.

“Every single day for the last 18 years, I get up every morning and I can’t wait to get to work, even when I know it’s going to be a rough day. I love what we do. We have the greatest mission in the world. We help people through some of their greatest times — bringing a baby into the world — and some of the toughest,” he said.

Peter Wright is also eager to help lead Bridgton Hospital through one of its toughest moments as an institution — rebuilding a physician group that has seen numerous departures over the past five years, as well as restoring specialty services and trust.

He is eager to take on the challenge.

“We are already putting a concerted effort to make sure that you get as much of your healthcare locally. Part of what we are going to do will be educators. Step one is helping folks understand the difference between what you need and what you want, what you think you want and what you really need,” he said.

Wright cited a book by a physician that focuses on “more health than care.” A professor said the key to making healthcare better in this country is to increase value.

“Value to me is quality and patient satisfaction divided by cost. You make cost go down, you increase value. We’ve learned that maybe we do too much in healthcare. One of the reasons I joined this system is that David (Tupponce) and Jeff (Brickman, CMH CEO) understand that. They understand that four times out of 10 when people go to the Emergency Department, they probably don’t need the Emergency Department. It’s expensive. So, we’ve opened up a Walk-in Care in North Bridgton. ED volume is down because people are going to Walk-in Care. That’s increasing value, getting the right patient the right care at the right time,” Wright explained. “That’s lowering your healthcare cost; making sure you’re not waiting in long lines; and you’re not bringing a bazooka to a squirt gun fight.”

Other items in the work at BH include general surgery twice a week, reinvesting in the orthopaedic program, recruiting a gastroenterologist (“I know there is a wait for colonoscopies, and I know you can’t wait any longer,” said Wright, drawing a few chuckles from the crowd), and looking at ways to “beef up” urology.

“All these programs that you want locally, we’re working on. It’s not going to happen tomorrow. It takes time to recruit the right person. Only six percent of physicians graduating want to work in a rural environment. As you know, the worst thing that we can do is hire a warm body. That doesn’t do anything. It damages relationships, and sends us backward,” he said. “We have a great process and involve people on the local end. We want to make sure that the folks that come here to provide care do that because they want to live this kind of life, and that means they can connect with you, they can make that difference, and they will be here a long time.”

Wright noted that at the presentation in February before Bridgton Selectmen, plans to build a new medical office building were mentioned, and continues to be in the planning process. Wright says this project matches BH’s goal to provide “Grade A quality and Grade A service with a Grade A facility.” He said the current building is dated and not efficient, giving it a C-plus rating.

“We want to bring both health and wellness,” he said. Citing that Maine is one of the oldest states in the nation, Wright said BH is looking at senior programs to keep them at home, independent and out of the hospital, as well as educators for local businesses on how to keep their workforces healthy and safe.

Wright emphasized that he “does not duck questions” and will answer whatever the public has on its mind.

“You may not like my answer, but I will always tell the truth, unless it’s protected by HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) or HR privacy laws,” he said. “Pretty much, I am an open book.”

Even though he resides in Winthrop (which he feels works well having to travel to Rumford and Lewiston, “I can’t afford to own three houses,” he joked), he plans to be in Bridgton when the public expects him to be here. Wright enjoys sailing and using his pontoon boat, so he plans to take in the local lakes and scenery on a regular basis.

“We will be here,” he added, noting BH is planning to enter a float in the Fourth of July parade. “We want to be involved.”

Wright then fielded several questions from the audience. They included:

• On Bridgton Hospital costs being higher than other facilities, which may lead consumers to shop and go elsewhere, Wright responded that he, too, has a high-deductible plan and understands the problem. A finance team is looking into prices, and immediately know BH is “out of market” in some areas. Once the study is complete, Wright will bring information forward to the public.

“I know, that in some cases, we are not the best value, but we’re working on it,” he added.

BH will soon be offering financial assistance for those trying to navigate cost of services and insurance coverages, starting with one day a week and then adding more days later.

• On recapturing the public’s trust and luring patients back to Bridgton Hospital (those patients that have followed providers to other nearby facilities), Wright first pointed out the all three Central Maine Healthcare facilities received “A” ranking from a top healthcare rating organization — Leapfrog.

“Just because we’re rated ‘A’ does it mean at some point a system’s error doesn’t happen? Absolutely not. We want to hear about every single one. When a mistake is made, we look at it as a system error. We assume all of our staff get up every day and come to work, like I do, super excited to be there and want to take good care of our patients. You don’t want anything bad to happen. They care with all of their heart. When a mistake is made, we assume it’s a system problem, which allowed our staff to make that mistake. When we find a mistake, it’s logged and we might find a trend. And, then address it to head off a bigger mistake,” he said. “The Number one credo in our quality is we are never done. It’s never enough. It never stops. The moment that anybody thinks we have quality nailed, it’s time to retire. It’s a culture of ongoing learning and continuous improvement. The quality here is very good. We will make mistakes from time to time. Any organization that says it doesn’t, run from those people. They are not telling you the truth. As long as human beings are involved, there will be system issues.”

As to trust, “It’s going to take a lot more to get you (and others) back. The good news is our entire team is willing to do that work, take as long as it takes, for you to be comfortable to come back. At some point down the road, you will. We will earn it. People did lose trust last year. We know it’s not just a switch that you can flip. Pete Wright is here. We can trust again. We have to earn that back. We have to earn it every day. It’s not that we earn it once and we’re good to go. We have to earn it with our staff, every interaction. It’s not about what I say, it’s about when we make a mistake, how do we handle it? It’s when the proverbial poop hits the fan, you need help, how do we react, how do we respond to that scenario. I have full confidence we will do well,” he concluded.