Story County Hospital issued the following announcement on September 8.
People across Sanford Health’s network of hospitals, clinics and long-term care locations will be able to connect remotely with providers 24/7 at a state-of-the-art virtual care center. (Photo by Getty Images; video by Sanford Health)
The transformation of rural health care continues as Sanford Health announced today an additional $350 million philanthropic gift that will support a cutting-edge clinical initiative to create one of the world’s leading virtual care centers to provide accessible care in rural and underserved areas of the Midwest.
The state-of-the-art virtual care center will serve people from across Sanford Health’s network of hospitals and clinics, expanding opportunities to receive care in our communities as well as our long-term care locations. It will also house innovation, education and research initiatives to advance digital health care solutions for the future.
We’ll see you from home: At home virtual care from Sanford Health
“This really allows us to make good on what we believe at this organization, which is that your ZIP code should not determine the level of care that you receive,” said Bill Gassen, president and CEO of Sanford Health.
“We believe that the lives here in North Dakota, South Dakota, Western Minnesota, and all throughout the rural parts of this country and overseas, our international clinics, all deserve the best level of care. And we are now able to deliver that virtually as well as in-person through Mr. Sanford’s gift.”
Builds on medical education, community health investment
This additional investment follows a $300 million initiative announced in March that included a significant expansion of graduate medical education and an investment in community health and wellness with 18 new sports fields at the Sanford Sports Complex.
“It is powerful to think about how many lives this gift will change,” said Bobbie Tibbetts, chief philanthropy officer of Sanford Health. “Philanthropy can not only save lives, but also inspire the next generation of people to give.”
Since March, Denny Sanford has committed $650 million to supporting Sanford Health’s groundbreaking initiatives, bringing his total giving to the nation’s largest rural health care system to nearly $1.5 billion.
“I am committed to seeing this initiative become a reality,” said Denny Sanford. “I continue to give to Sanford Health because I believe that supporting the people and communities in the regions they serve is the best investment I can make.”
This gift announced today follows a legacy of transformational giving by Denny Sanford to the health system. His gift of $400 million in 2007 propelled the health system from a small regional provider to one of the largest health systems in the nation. It also sparked a spirit of generosity, inspiring thousands of other donors to annually support the mission of Sanford Health.
Original source can be found here.
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