USDA loan helps Kansas hospitals shift from paper records

10/6/2011

Phillipsburg, Kansas-based Great Plains Health Alliance was recently awarded a USDA loan as part of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack's Community Facilities projects to fund 22 hospitals throughout the state.

GPHA will receive a $3 million district loan and a $2.2 million loan guarantee from the USDA. The funds will go toward purchasing advanced patient health record equipment for rural hospitals, such as telemedicine services, real-time virtual consultations, diagnostic examinations, digital diagnostic imaging, remote monitoring and other specialty services. In addition, 41 jobs are expected to be created as a result of the loan.

"The Great Plains Health Alliance is a great example of the regional collaboration that needs to be taking place in the healthcare industry," said USDA Rural Development State Director Patty Clark.

Roger John, GPHA president, added that the alliance had been hoping to assist hospitals in the transfer to electronic medical records for some time, and the financing will allow for group purchases of electronic software instead of the costlier option of buying the equipment individually.

The Salina Journal adds that the USDA has guaranteed 90 percent of the loan, for which hospitals will use to comply with the government's 2015 meaningful use deadline to transfer from paper to electronic records.