ATHENS — UGA receives $3.7 million to help rural healthcare facilities prepare for disasters and infrastructure disruptions.

Release:

UGA Institute for Disaster Management receives $3.7M grant
The funds will help rural healthcare facilities prepare for disasters

Athens, Ga. – The University of Georgia Institute for Disaster Management has been awarded $3.735 million to help harden rural hospitals, skilled nursing facilities and in-patient hospice in Georgia against disasters.

Through the Rural Health Transformation Program, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is investing in rural health initiatives across the country. This nationwide initiative includes state-specific programs, including Georgia’s Rural Enhancement and Transformation of Health or GREAT Health Program, led by the Georgia Department of Community Health and supported by CMS.

This IDM-led project is one of nearly 30 initiatives funded through GREAT Health to strengthen rural healthcare throughout the state. Named the Rural Healthcare Facility Resilience Program, the program aims to help rural facilities expand their ability to safely shelter in place and, when appropriate, increase their capacity to receive evacuees from other facilities who cannot safely shelter in place.

Through this program, IDM will partner with engineering firms to conduct infrastructure assessments at eligible facilities across Georgia. These assessments go beyond regulatory surveys to address things a facility needs to safely continue caring for patients or residents during disasters.

Then, facilities will receive a detailed, actionable report identifying vulnerabilities, observations from the assessment visit and recommended priorities for resilience investments, which they can then use to apply for grant funding through the GREAT Health Program.

This initiative will ensure that rural healthcare facilities remain sustainable access points for care for thousands of Georgians by improving how those facilities operate during disasters, thereby supporting continuity of healthcare services and reducing the likelihood of high-cost and high-risk evacuations.

“Rural healthcare facilities are lifelines for their communities, but disasters can disrupt the power, water and other critical infrastructure they need to protect the health and safety of the patients and residents who depend on these facilities,” said Morgan Taylor, director of IDM and primary investigator on the project. “Our goal for this program is to give rural healthcare facilities the resources to address vulnerabilities before they become crises.”