DORGAN HELPS LAUNCH TRINITY HEALTH RURAL RADIOLOGY OUTREACH INITIATIVE
Friday, August 21, 2009
CONTACT: Justin Kitsch
or Brenden Timpe
PHONE: 202-224-2551
(MINOT, N.D.) --- U.S. Senator Byron Dorgan (D-N.D.) today kicked off a new initiative with Trinity Health officials that will allow rural clinics and health care centers to send radiology scans electronically to the Minot hospital for assessment, reducing the time it takes to analyze scans by hours or even days.
Trinity Health’s Rural Radiology Outreach Initiative benefits 15 rural health care centers that rely on Trinity Health’s radiology department to analyze x-rays, ultrasounds, CT scans and other tests. The rural clinics will be able to digitize their scans and send them electronically to Trinity Health, who can turn them around in a matter of hours. Currently the clinics print copies of scans and drive them to Minot.
Senator Dorgan secured funding for this project in an appropriations bill signed into law in March. The funding covered the initial investment to upgrade equipment at the 15 rural health care centers to allow them to link with Trinity Health’s electronic system.
“This is an example of the steps that can be taken to drastically improve rural health care,” said Dorgan. “Due to this investment, patients in rural communities will be able to hear back from radiologists in a matter of hours instead of days. Clinics will now be able to send scans to Trinity Health with a click of a button instead of driving film copies to Minot—saving time in emergencies and for routine procedures.”
“Trinity Health is to be commended for spearheading this project and seeing how updated technology would greatly benefit the clinics and community health centers that rely on its radiology department,” added Dorgan.
The rural hospitals and clinics participating in the program include Bottineau, Cando, Crosby, Garrison, Kenmare, Minot, Mohall, New Town, Rolla, Rugby, Stanley, Tioga, Velva, Watford City and Williston.
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