Serving proudly since 1873 as the beautiful Nebraska Panhandle's first newspaper
Serving proudly since 1873 as the beautiful Nebraska Panhandle's first newspaper
Sidney Regional Medical Center and other Panhandle hospitals got a boost in providing advanced services with a telemedicine grant from USDA Rural Development. The $265,159 grant was announced last week, with the award going to the Rural Nebraska Healthcare Network, of which SRMC is a part.
In making the announcement, Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said that USDA is awarding grants for 128 projects to increase access to job training, educational and health care services in rural areas.
“Empowering rural Americans with access to services for quality of life and economic development is critical to rural prosperity,” Secretary Perdue said. “Distance learning and telemedicine technology bridges the gap that often exists between rural communities and essential education, workforce training and health care resources.”
The Panhandle grant was given to help Rural Nebraska Healthcare Network replace obsolete telemedicine technology at nine sites in far western Nebraska to continue modernization of the existing tele-health system. The project will assist facilities serving Arthur, Banner, Box Butte, Cheyenne, Dawes, Duel, Garden, Grant, Keith, Kimball, Morrill, Perkins, Scotts Bluff, Sheridan, and Sioux Counties. It has the potential to serve 43,840 residents.
SRMC Director of Public Relations Evie Ranslem-Parsons said locally the grant will help grow the hospital’s telehealth program, which provides communications between facilities.
SRMC’s telehealth program was announced in April and comprises two main components: one where patients can speak to providers over the telephone, the other allowing patient-provider visits via video conferencing. Parsons said the grant will largely be used to help set up the video conferencing program.
SRMC also has a telehealth program for patients to use that is currently available in Chappell at the Chappell Medical Outreach Clinic where the patient can stop in the clinic and if a provider is not on staff the patient can use the telehealth option to talk to the provider at the Walk-in Clinic instead of traveling.
The hospital is also working on setting up similar service in another part of the county.
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