Healthcare work comes with long shifts, high stakes, moral injury, and easy access to medications. Add the fear of losing a license or a career built over decades, and it makes sense that many clinicians hide a drinking or drug problem until it becomes impossible to hide. The good news: Maine has a well-established path for getting help, and outpatient treatment can fit into it.
What Maine’s MPHP does
The Medical Professionals Health Program (MPHP) was established in 1987 by the Maine Medical Association and is based in Manchester, Maine. It is overseen by a peer review committee and serves physicians (MD/DO), physician assistants, and nursing professionals, including residents and students in those fields.
MPHP provides confidential intake assessments, monitoring, support, evaluation, treatment recommendations, advocacy, education, and mentorship. It supports professionals facing substance misuse, mental health concerns, behavioral challenges, stress, and burnout. MPHP welcomes people who come forward voluntarily before their license or job is affected, as well as people referred or mandated by an employer or licensing board.
MPHP is a monitoring and advocacy program, not a treatment center. When treatment is recommended, participants work with a clinical provider. That is where an outpatient program like ours can fit.
Two paths, one standard of care
If you are in MPHP monitoring
- We coordinate with your MPHP case manager once you sign a release
- Attendance, participation, and progress updates shared as your agreement requires
- Treatment planning that lines up with MPHP recommendations
- Help with documentation and continuing-care plans for step-down
- Schedules built around clinical shifts, including evening IOP
If you are not in monitoring
- Private, voluntary treatment with federal confidentiality protections
- No contact with your employer, hospital, or board without written consent
- Honest guidance about whether reaching out to MPHP could help you
- Virtual IOP from anywhere in Maine for added discretion
- Insurance verified before you start
Working with MPHP participants
Portland Treatment regularly works with MPHP participants, though we are not a formal partner of the program. If you are already enrolled, or MPHP has recommended treatment, our admissions team will ask what your agreement requires. With your signed authorization, our clinicians can communicate with your case manager, confirm attendance, and share progress in the format the program needs. You stay informed about what is shared and when.
Depending on clinical need, care may begin in our Partial Hospitalization Program (PHP), then step down to IOP and outpatient therapy. If withdrawal needs medical supervision first, we coordinate with trusted licensed detox providers, and if a residential stay is recommended we help with that referral and the return home.
If you are not in monitoring
Not every clinician who struggles is in a monitoring program, and you do not need a referral to start treatment with us. Substance use treatment records are protected under federal law (42 CFR Part 2) in addition to HIPAA. We do not contact your employer, your hospital, or your licensing board without your written consent.
Some professionals choose to contact MPHP voluntarily because it can offer advocacy and structure, and coming forward early is generally viewed more favorably than waiting for a crisis. That is your decision. We can talk it through honestly, but we cannot give legal or licensing advice. For those questions, MPHP or an attorney who works with licensed professionals is the right resource.
What treatment looks like for clinicians
Healthcare professionals often know the clinical language and still find it hard to be the patient. Our team treats that directly. Care is built around evidence-based therapy, including CBT, DBT, individual and group therapy, and relapse prevention.
- Common substances: alcohol, opioids, benzodiazepines, and other prescription drugs.
- Co-occurring concerns: burnout, anxiety, depression, trauma, and sleep problems through dual-diagnosis care.
- Medication management: coordination with trusted local prescribers for cravings and co-occurring symptoms.
- Flexible scheduling: day and evening IOP tracks, plus Virtual IOP statewide.
How to start
Call our admissions team for a confidential conversation. Tell us whether you are in MPHP, have been referred, or are reaching out on your own. We will talk through the right level of care, verify your insurance, and, if you are in monitoring, what coordination your agreement needs. If you are worried about a colleague, MPHP can also advise on how to help: (207) 623-9266.
Common questions
What is the Maine Medical Professionals Health Program (MPHP)?
MPHP was established in 1987 by the Maine Medical Association and is overseen by a peer review committee. It provides confidential intake assessments, monitoring, advocacy, treatment recommendations, and support for physicians, physician assistants, and nursing professionals, including residents and students, facing substance use, mental health, behavioral, stress, or burnout concerns.
Can Portland Treatment work with my MPHP monitoring agreement?
Yes, with your written consent. If you are enrolled in MPHP, we can share attendance, participation, and progress updates with your case manager, coordinate on treatment recommendations, and help with documentation your agreement requires. Nothing is released without your signed authorization.
Do I have to be in MPHP to get treatment as a nurse or physician?
No. Many healthcare professionals seek outpatient treatment privately. Your records are protected by federal confidentiality rules (42 CFR Part 2 and HIPAA), and we do not contact your employer or licensing board without your written consent.
Will going to treatment cost me my license?
We cannot give legal or licensing advice, but MPHP says it welcomes professionals who seek help voluntarily before their license or employment is affected. Getting help early is generally viewed far more favorably than waiting for a crisis. For licensing questions, talk with MPHP or an attorney.
Can I keep working while in treatment?
Often, yes. Evening IOP and Virtual IOP are designed to fit around demanding schedules. Whether practicing during treatment is appropriate depends on your clinical picture and, if you are in monitoring, the terms of your agreement.
Sources
Portland Treatment is an independent treatment provider and is not part of MPHP. This article is educational and is not medical, legal, or licensing advice. In a crisis, call 988 or 911.
