Hospitals come together to support improving healthcare in the region

Through the Rural Health Development Hospital Improvement Grant, several eastern Montana facilities have banded together to provide support for each other on a regional basis. The grant is designed to provide additional funding for hospitals for capital purchases, quality improvements and for creating cost savings and operational efficiencies. It is meant to benefit smaller facilities in implementing improvements on an annual basis.

The Hospital Improvement Grant has been established since 2009 and has distributed over $460,000 with participation from over 26 healthcare facilities. The participating facilities, on a voluntary basis, contribute funds to Rural Health Development, Inc. Once the funds are received, applications are reviewed by the grants committee, made up of rural hospital CEOs, and then funding is distributed.

Funds are distributed to the region's smaller critical access hospitals, but funding comes from all hospitals in the region including Billings Clinic and St Vincent's Healthcare.

This year, Dahl Memorial Healthcare Association received a grant for $6,139 for the purchase of a larger blanket warmer.

Dahl has been very fortunate to receive additional funding recently and the association is extremely grateful for the number of grants as well as generous individuals who have contributed to the hospital's current and future equipment list.

ONEOK - $80,000, donation

Murdock Foundation - $142,500, grant

USDA - 65,000, grant

CDBG - $600,000, grant

Southeast Electric - $33,000, donation

Montana Health Network - 6,139, grant

SHIP Grant - $84,317, grant

Total grants and donations - $1,010,956.00

For additional information about the grant please contact Montana Health Network.