The Maine State Patient Education Forum: networking system for a rural area

Patient education councils are growing and prospering. The Maine State Patient Education Forum is one such council which has gone through a continuing developmental process to meet needs of patient educators in Maine. Involving many organizations and individuals who do patient education, having a clear direction and a common locus, scheduling regular meetings, and participating in national networking have all been ways to vitalize and strengthen the council. Maine as a rural state has found the forum to be a dynamic model to motivate patient educators to maintain flexibility and acquire new concepts so they can continue to provide high quality patient education services.