Assistant Secretary for Insular Areas Tony Babauta, of the Department of the Interior, awarded $1.8 million in grant funding to Gov. Juan F. Luis Hospital for information technology equipment and software and to train staff on the system, according to a statement from the department.
“System improvements will go a long way in enhancing the delivery of essential primary and specialty healthcare services the (hospital) provides to St. Croix community residents,” Babauta said, giving Delegate to Congress Donna Christensen credit "for the critical role she has played in advocating for the Virgin Islands and for her steadfast voice in Congress ensuring essential programs are preserved and protected.”
During his last visit to the Virgin Islands, Christensen coordinated a meeting with the various healthcare leaders and stakeholders from which Babauta said he took away a deeper understanding of the complex and critical challenges the hospitals, the not-for-profit health clinics and the Department of Health are struggling to overcome.
“My office does not have the resources to address all of the issues that were presented,” Babauta said, ”but we have engaged our relevant federal partners and local stakeholders in addressing how to coordinate our priorities so that we can leverage our resources to better assist the Virgin Islands.”
The improvements will help the hospital improve regulatory compliance and help track patient electronic health records, which is required by President Barack Obama’s Affordable Healthcare Act, according to Interior.
This grant for Luis Hospital is one of three announced by Babauta on Tuesday. Gov. John deJongh Jr. responded to news of the awards, saying the money and the projects it will support will allow important institutions to develop the resources they need.
“These three awards … all directly address the needs of the people of the Virgin Islands,” deJongh said in a statement. DeJongh said the Interior Department has been an invaluable partner to the Virgin Islands “as we invest in the infrastructure and technology that will support our territory’s continued growth and future prosperity.”
