| FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
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Media Contact: Sara O'Keefe |
| April 8, 2009 |
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Phone: (303) 953-3655
Cell: (303) 618-6995
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Twelve Organizations Granted $2 Million to Improve Health Information Technology
DENVER — Nonprofit health care organizations across Colorado are getting a jump start on the use of Health Information Technology (HIT) through $2 million in grants from The Colorado Health Foundation. By adopting electronic health records and related technologies, these organizations will be able to provide more effective and efficient patient care.
IT is defined as the hardware and software necessary to store, protect, retrieve and transfer clinical, administrative and financial information electronically in health care settings. HIT is a valuable tool to improve efficiency, quality and safety in health care.
“It’s increasingly clear that Health Information Technology is a key strategy in improving our health care system,” said Anne Warhover, president and CEO of The Colorado Health Foundation. “The recently passed federal stimulus package includes significant investments in HIT. The Foundation is working to ensure that Colorado’s health care safety net is positioned to take advantage of HIT’s potential to both improve health care quality and reduce costs.”
The grants announced today were awarded to a diverse range of nonprofit health care organizations, including Federally Qualified Health Centers, critical access hospitals, rural health clinics, community-based health information exchanges, an independent clinic, a community mental health center and a statewide association of school-based health centers.
The Foundation has identified HIT as a priority in its efforts to make Colorado the healthiest state in the nation. In 2007 the Foundation launched Healthy Connections, an $11 million, multiyear initiative aimed at increasing the use of information technology in safety-net clinics and creating the infrastructure necessary for health care providers to share information electronically.
The latest Healthy Connections grantees include:
Chaffee People’s Clinic (Salida)
Clinica Family Health Services (Lafayette)
Colorado Association for School-Based Health Care (Denver)
Fort Collins Family Medicine Residency Program (Fort Collins)
Grand River Hospital District (Rifle)
Mountain Family Health Centers (Glenwood Springs)
Northwest Colorado Community Health Project (Steamboat Springs/Craig)
St. Vincent General Hospital District – Buena Vista Family Practice Clinic (Leadville/Buena Vista)
Salud Family Health Centers (Fort Lupton)
CORHIO/San Luis Valley Health Information Exchange (Denver/Alamosa)
Southwest Colorado Mental Health Center (Durango)
Southwest Memorial Hospital – Southwest Primary Care Clinic (Cortez)
About The Colorado Health Foundation
The Colorado Health Foundation works to make Colorado the healthiest state in the nation by increasing the number of Coloradans with health insurance, ensuring they have access to quality, coordinated care and encouraging healthy living. The Foundation invests in the community through grants and initiatives to health-related nonprofits that focus on these goals, as well as operating medical education programs to increase the health care workforce. The Foundation’s assets of more than $900 million include an investment portfolio as well as an ownership interest in Denver’s HealthONE hospital system. For more information, please visit www.ColoradoHealth.org.