SWAINSBORO, GA - The Center for Rural Prosperity and Innovation, a branch of the Georgia Department of Agriculture and known as Georgia’s Rural Center, has approved a $110,038 grant to assist Emanuel Medical Center (EMC) with the purchase of a replacement echocardiogram system and a new bronchoscope to enable bedside bronchoscopies.
“Through Georgia’s Rural Center, we are making significant investments in healthcare, workforce development, and education in Rural Georgia, while ensuring agriculture – our state’s #1 industry – is well-represented in future development planning,” said Georgia Agriculture Commissioner Tyler J Harper. “Combined with the Rural Center’s recent investment in Evans Memorial Hospital in Claxton, these investments ensure families across rural Georgia have access to quality care close to their communities.”
Emanuel Medical Center, located in Swainsboro, has been repeatedly defined as one of Georgia’s most necessary hospitals. This is due to its remote location and the chronically ill population it serves. Currently, EMC provides $500,000-$600,000 per month in uncompensated care. Despite this, EMC has earned the CMS 4-Star or 5-Star every year. In addition, EMC is in the top 5 Georgia Trend Hospitals annually.
New services require new technology and equipment, and EMC is expanding Cardiovascular Services. Emanuel County’s obesity rate is ~50%, and the adult diabetes rate is ~14%. These two chronic diseases contribute greatly to cardiovascular disease. Since the addition of Dr. Randall Brown, Cardio Thoracic Surgeon to the EMC medical staff, the volume of echocardiograms and bronchoscopies performed at the hospital has grown 53%.
“The Center for Rural Prosperity and Innovation, a branch of the Georgia Department of Agriculture, stepped up to provide vital funding to replace the aging echocardiogram system and a new bronchoscope to enable bedside bronchoscopies. These units will allow EMC to continue to grow Dr. Brown's practice and to expand and enhance the scope of services available in Emanuel and surrounding counties,” said Dave Flanders, Operations and Systems Consultant, Emanuel Medical Center.
“Emanual Medical serves a critical sector of rural Georgia, and Georgia’s Rural Center is proud to partner with EMC to continue its medical service to Swainsboro and the surrounding region,” said Charlie Fiveash, Executive Director of Georgia’s Rural Center. “We are grateful to the local legislative delegation, particularly Representative Parrish and Senator Burns, for supporting the Rural Center’s efforts to support health care initiatives in rural east/central Georgia.”
About Georgia’s Rural Center:
To date, Georgia’s Rural Center projects have resulted in a total investment in rural Georgia of more than $408 million, with $3 million of center funds, which is a 132:1 return ratio against CRPI funds. Since its inception in 2018, the work of Georgia’s Rural Center has touched all 159 of Georgia’s metro, suburban, and rural communities through regional and statewide projects, and directly impacted 73 counties through projects needed in rural communities to help them prosper and thrive.
