USD Division of Health Affairs awarded $1.1 million to train health care workforce in telehealth

The University of South Dakota Division of Health Affairs has been awarded a $1.1 million federal grant from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) to train future health care workers in delivering cutting-edge telehealth services to South Dakota patients.

The USD School of Health Sciences, Sanford School of Medicine, Department of Communication Sciences & Disorders, and Department of Psychology are working together to establish infrastructure and talent to support the telehealth collaborative, which will allow for expanded services offered at spoke sites without the need for travel by the patient or care provider.

Supported by the office of South Dakota Sen. Mike Rounds, the Telehealth Collaborative will build on USD Health Affairs’ existing investment in cutting-edge technology to educate the next generation of health care providers in interprofessional and collaborative learning and simulation, ensuring trained professionals are workforce ready.

“We are grateful to Senator Rounds for his support of the Telehealth Collaborative and the state’s future health care leaders,” said USD President Sheila K. Gestring. “This grant not only strengthens USD’s commitment to innovative, accessible health care, but also reinforces our dedication to serving communities across South Dakota. By creating hands-on training in telehealth, we’re ensuring our graduates are prepared to meet the needs of all South Dakotans, regardless of where they live.”

The Telehealth Collaborative will:

1. Build an interdisciplinary/interprofessional telehealth platform to train health care students in the state.
2. Create an interdisciplinary/interprofessional education network to cultivate future leaders in telehealth and health care services, to include development of telehealth curriculum, a telehealth certificate, and integration of telehealth content and courses within the existing educational curricula.
3. Recruit and further develop faculty and staff with expertise to establish a telehealth core team.
4. Expand existing collaborations to recruit and support rural spoke clinical sites across the state in a hub-and-spoke telehealth design model with a focus on rural and underserved communities.
5. Establish a regional telehealth consortium to stimulate resource sharing, education, training, service and research.

Telehealth must be integrated into educational models if it is to be successfully utilized in traditional health care settings. Training is essential for health care providers to feel confident in their ability to extend their reach and to engage in quality, safe, efficient and effective telehealth interactions with patients. Through this project, the USD health care curricula will provide observed, simulated and actual patient/client encounters.

“I congratulate the University of South Dakota for receiving a grant to help establish and expand its Telehealth Collaborative, an initiative that will significantly enhance health care access and education across our state,” said Sen. Rounds. “This investment will build critical infrastructure for telehealth education, equipping future health care professionals with cutting-edge tools and technologies. By expanding access to quality care, particularly in rural and underserved communities, this collaborative will strengthen health care delivery in South Dakota and foster the development of the next generation of health care leaders.”

Haifa Samra, Ph.D., dean of the School of Health Sciences, is the principal investigator on the grant. “This two-year project will foster a practice-ready health care workforce trained in cutting-edge technologies while simultaneously increasing access to quality care across South Dakota,” she said. “The work will improve the health and wellness of our state today and into the future.”