KU News Release

KU Center for Telemedicine and Telehealth receives $40,000 gift

Pictured from left are: Jeff Mason, president, Northwest Kansas Area Medical Foundation; Jay Jolly, CEO, Goodland Regional Medical Center; Ryan Spaulding, director, KU Center for Telemedicine and Telehealth; and Missy Heidrick, development director, KU Endowment.

KANSAS CITY, Kan. — The University of Kansas Center for Telemedicine and Telehealth received a $40,000 gift from the Northwest Kansas Area Medical Foundation in Goodland. The gift will bring high-definition technology and support a new cutting-edge radiology service for the statewide telemedicine network.

Telemedicine is a crucial part of the Midwest Cancer Alliance, which connects the KU Cancer Center with hospitals, clinics and oncologists throughout Kansas and western Missouri. By using the new technology, called Intelemage, all KU health care providers who use telemedicine will be able to access radiology films and scans in a real-time environment. This gift will fund Intelemage, a standard radiology service, for three to five years.

“This gift helps improve oncology outreach clinics in Hays, Goodland and Horton, and also expands the capabilities of the Midwest Cancer Alliance as we connect with our partners,” said Dr. Gary Doolittle, medical director for the Midwest Cancer Alliance. “No matter where I am in the state, I will have access to the same cutting-edge information to help me make the best-informed diagnosis and treatment decisions for my patients.”

The new equipment to be purchased with the gift will outfit two suites at the KU Medical Center in Kansas City, Kan., with high-definition technology to accommodate patient consultations.

Jeff Mason, president of the Northwest Kansas Area Medical Foundation, said that although the foundation is based in the northwest corner of the state, this gift will benefit all of Kansas.

“The days of geography isolating information are over,” he said. “We encourage other statewide organizations to embrace the new opportunities our technology presents and invest in the health of our state.”

Traditional telemedicine technology does not have the capacity to transmit scans and X-rays. Now KU providers can view scans and talk with patients just as they would in a standard office visit at any telemedicine site in Kansas.

The KU Medical Center has established itself as a leader not only in the Kansas City community but in the entire region, said Ryan Spaulding, director of the KU Center for Telemedicine and Telehealth.

“Thanks to this generous gift from the Northwest Kansas Area Medical Foundation, we are again on the forefront of innovation,” he said.

The gift will be managed by KU Endowment, the university’s official fundraising organization. Founded in 1891, KU Endowment is the first foundation of its kind at a U.S. public university.

The Northwest Kansas Area Medical Foundation was formed in 1968 with a mission to promote, advance and assist in the development of quality systems of health care delivery in cooperation with Goodland Regional Medical Center on behalf of the residents of the tri-state area.

-30-

The University of Kansas is a major comprehensive research and teaching university. University Relations is the central public relations office for KU's Lawrence campus.