Pharmacy announces new drug packaging system

Kennebec Pharmacy & Home Care has announced the launch of KennePac — a new multi-dose medication packaging system designed to help patients take their medications as directed — to retail pharmacy customers throughout central and mid-coast Maine.

The state-of-the-art packaging system allows customers to receive their medications directly from the pharmacy already pre-sorted and ready to go, according to the company. Medications are dispensed into separate pouches, each clearly labeled with the patient’s name, date of administration and time of administration, as well as the medication’s name, strength and quantity.

“Our goal with KennePac is to address the barriers associated with medication adherence and provide a solution that will help increase quality of life for both the patient and caregiver,” said Michael Nowak, president and owner of Kennebec Pharmacy & Home Care, in a news release.

Any routine maintenance prescriptions as well as over-the-counter medications and vitamins can be filled in KennePac. The pouches take the place of daily and weekly pill organizer boxes.

Before starting on KennePac, the company’s pharmacists work with each customer’s prescribing physician and insurance company to synchronize their prescriptions on the same fill schedule. Pouches are then refilled once a month and are available for pickup or delivery.

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Gifford’s wins honors at 2017 World Dairy Expo

Old Fashioned Vanilla and Orange Sherbet Win First Place in their Categories; Company Prepares to Wrap Up Ice Cream Stand Season in Maine by end of October

Gifford’s Famous Ice Cream announced that its old fashioned vanilla and orange sherbet swept first place in their categories at the World Dairy Expo Championship Dairy Products Contest, the leading dairy and ice cream competition in North America.

The company was scheduled to be honored last Tuesday at the World Dairy Expo in Madison, Wisconsin. It won first place in two ice cream classes: regular vanilla and open-class sherbet.

In 2016, Gifford’s black raspberry chocolate chip frozen yogurt won first place in the frozen yogurt category, with its French vanilla and vanilla bean placing second in their classes. The company’s chocolate has been a contest grand champion five times, meaning the top winner for all the ice cream categories.

The Wisconsin Dairy Products Association sponsors the annual competition, which features 14 ice cream categories along with 65 other categories for cheese, butter, whey and Grade A dairy products. Each ice cream entry is judged in a blind taste test, based on flavor, body and texture, melting quality, color and appearance. Judging took place Aug. 24. There were 1,489 total entries this year across all 79 product categories.

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Manchester stained-glass classes to be offered Saturday

Stained Glass Express is inviting the public to attend its eighth annual Beginner’s Glass Bonanza from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday at its shop, located at 966 Western Ave. in Manchester, according to a news release from the business.

The activity is the business’s participation in Maine Craft Weekend. It features workshops led by expert instructors on making stained glass, mosaics, fused glass, making glass beads with a torch, and making a wind chime from an old wine bottle. Each project can be completed in under an hour, and no experience is necessary.

The cost is $13 per project or $60 for all five.

For more information, visit the Stained Glass Express website.

Randolph company honored for safety record

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Coutts Bros., of Randolph, was recently chosen from among hundreds of other suppliers to receive the Health and Safety Award from AVANGRID, a diversified energy and utility company, according to a news release from Coutts Bros.

Coutts Bros. is an electrical construction and maintenance contractor serving long-standing energy utility clients throughout the Northeast. It has initiated a companywide commitment to safety by employing industry-specific safety personnel, undergoing a safety training and evaluation process through Associated Builders and Contractors, and investing in unmanned aerial systems for high-voltage asset inspection, among other safety protocols and initiatives.

Coutts’ investment in safety previously has been recognized with a 2015 National Safety Merit Award by the builders and contractors group.

Coutts, founded in 1963, is a family-owned business of 45 employees that builds and maintains substations, distribution systems and transmission infrastructure.

Mirabile named managing director of Camden National Wealth Management

CAMDEN — Jennifer Mirabile has been appointed managing director of Camden National Wealth Management.

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Mirabile will lead a team of 19 professionals providing comprehensive wealth management, investment management and trust services to individual and institutional clients in Maine and beyond. In addition, she expects to expand her team’s footprint by establishing a new Camden National Wealth Management office in Camden.

Mirabile brings over 25 years of experience in senior wealth management, private banking, and relationship management roles with Key Private Bank. She joined Camden National Wealth Management from People’s United Bank Wealth Management, where she was senior vice president and senior wealth advisor for the state of Maine.

Active in the local community, Mirabile has served on a number of boards and committees, including the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Maine, United Mid Coast Charities, Friends of CSD, PenBay YMCA Sailfish, and the Children’s House Montessori School. She is a certified financial planner, a certified wealth strategist and a graduate of Bates College.

Day’s Jewelers presents $5,000 grant to Camp Sunshine

Day’s Jewelers presented a $5,000 grant from the nonprofit Jewelers for Children to Camp Sunshine on Sept. 21 at Day’s Jewelers in Augusta, according to the business.

Camp Sunshine is an organization dedicated to helping children cope with serious illnesses along with their families. The nonprofit Jewelers for Children organization was founded by the jewelry industry in 1999 and is dedicated to helping children in need. More than 20,000 people nationwide were motivated to vote for their favorite local charities through the nonprofit, and Day’s worked in conjunction with Camp Sunshine to encourage people to vote. When the final tallies were reported, Camp Sunshine earned a spot in the top 10, winning the $5,000 grant.

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Day’s said this is the fourth year in a row in which Camp Sunshine has won such a grant, for a total of $35,000 over that period.

Gifford’s ice cream stands wrapping up season

Ice cream stand season for Gifford’s Famous Ice Cream is drawing to a close.

The closing day for the Skowhegan stand is today; for Auburn and Waterville, it is Oct. 22; and for Bangor and Farmington, it is Oct. 29. Throughout October, there will be limited days and hours of operation at the stands.

Franklin Memorial Hospital awarded gold star for addressing tobacco

Frankllin Memorial Hospital has been awarded The Center for Tobacco Independence’s highest accolade for the seventh straight year for its efforts to address tobacco use and keep its campus tobacco-free so our employees, patients and visitors remain safe from exposure to secondhand smoke.

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The center’s Breathe Easy initiative held the annual Tobacco-Free Hospital Gold Star Standards of Excellence Awards ceremony Sept. 27, to celebrate the efforts of Maine hospitals to address smoking and tobacco use on their campuses. Franklin Memorial, a gold-level awardee, was among 33 hospitals from across the state recognized for their achievements in advancing campus smoke-free and tobacco-free policies as well as promoting tobacco-free lifestyles.

Award levels are based on best-practice criteria such as a smoke-free and tobacco-free campus policy, annual screening for tobacco use, referral to tobacco treatment and supporting employee education related to tobacco treatment.

Other 2017 gold-level awardees frequented by patients in central Maine include Central Maine Medical Center, in Lewiston; Inland Hospital, Waterville; LincolnHealth, in Damariscotta; Maine Medical Center, in Portland; MaineGeneral Medical Center, in Augusta and Waterville; Mayo Regional Hospital, Dover-Foxcroft; Mercy Hospital, Portland; Mid Coast Hospital, Brunswick; Sebasticook Valley Health, Pittsfield; St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center, Lewiston; and Waldo County General Hospital, Belfast. Redington-Fairview General Hospital in Skowhegan achieved the silver level of recognition.

The program is funded by Maine Prevention Services. Maine Prevention Services is an initiative through the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention working across the state to impact tobacco, substance use, and obesity.

Compiled from contributed releases


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