By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post
Trego County-Lemke Memorial Hospital dedicated an expansion on Wednesday with special guest Gov. Laura Kelly.
The hospital has added 11 private patient rooms, a new emergency room and expanded physical therapy to include a pool for aqua therapy and private treatment rooms, Jeremy Rabe, hospital CEO, said.
A new nurses station accompanies the new patient rooms. They also include three isolation rooms, Rabe said.
Four assisted-living apartments will also be added. Rabe said he anticipated those apartments would open by the end of March.
"We are dedicated in creating an environment that fosters healing, comfort and support," Rabe said on Wednesday.
The $13 million project was paid for through bonds.
"A lot of health care has been pushed to more of an outpatient setting," Rabe said. "With this expansion, it's going to let us bring more specialty doctors here and offer more telemedicine opportunities.
"The big thing was to keep our Trego County residents in Trego County."
Rabe said the hospital hasn't signed any contracts with new specialists but is working toward that goal.
The expansion is also enhancing patient privacy. The ER, which was built in 1951 as a large room separated by curtains, now has private treatment rooms.
Ambulances can now drive into the ER bay and unload patients out of the elements and in a private area.
The previous trauma rooms were too small to handle the severe injuries that might come off the interstate, Rabe said.
Phase two of the project will include remodeling the existing emergency room, laboratory and physical therapy areas.
Dr. Paulo De Andrade celebrated what he called a new, state-of-the-art building, which he said was a symbol of hope and healing.
He said small critical-access hospitals like Trego County-Lemke Memorial prevent residents from driving long distances for care.
"This hospital represents our unwavering commitment to everyone who walks through this door to have the best care possible," De Andrade said.
Gov. Kelly used the opportunity to highlight the need for Medicaid expansion in Kansas, which has been a continuing focus of her administration.
"I have often said my goal as your governor is to make Kansas the best place to live, to work and to raise a family," Kelly said. "Quality health care and access to medical treatment are fundamental to that vision."
Local hospitals are essential to providing care and jobs and to local economies, she said.
"Without these hospitals, families are forced to travel long distances for emergency care; businesses struggle to recruit and retain workers, and local economies suffer," Kelly said. "That is why my administration has prioritized investments in health care infrastructure across Kansas and in economic development in general."
The state has dedicated $2 million to rural emergency hospitals, $30 million to increasing reimbursement rates for providers who accept Medicaid patients and $10 million to hospitals treating behavioral health patients.
Of the 97 rural hospitals in Kansas, 62 are in threat of closure, the highest rate of at-risk hospitals in the country, Kelly said.
"If we do nothing, more hospitals will close, leaving communities without emergency services," she said.
Hospitals are the largest employers in many rural communities. Closing hospitals means losing jobs, Kelly said.
She said expanding Medicaid would be one of the most effective means of protecting rural hospitals. The expansion would result in 150,000 Kansans gaining health care coverage, many of them in rural Kansas.
"Hospitals would get financial relief, allowing them to stay open and fully staffed," Kelly said. "23,000 new jobs would be created across health care and in local economies."
$1.2 billion per year would be injected into the Kansas economy. In the last 10 years, Kansas has left $7.6 billion of Kansas taxpayer money in Washington, D.C.
"It's time to bring our dollars home," Kelly said.
"This is not a partisan issue," she said. "It's about economic security, public health and fairness for all Kansans."
Kelly signed legislation expanding a loan forgiveness program for medical professionals in Kansas. OBGYNs were added to a list of qualified providers and scholarships were extended to osteopathic students.
She also urged the expansion of telehealth and mental health services in Kansas.
"We are making progress. The expansion of this hospital is proof that what we invest in health care, we invest in the future of Kansas," Kelly said.