Sweet Springs Progress: Changes afoot at I-70 Medical Center

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The I-70 Medical Center, located just outside of Sweet Springs, is somewhat in a state of flux these days.

One of the most high-profile changes to the hospital is the upcoming sale of the center to HMC/CAH Consolidated Inc., the company that has been managing the hospital. Though the sale was announced in August 2008, it was only just approved by Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster Feb. 2, 2009. HMC President Larry Arthur said he expects the sale to go through by the end of February.

The I-70 Medical Center is designated as a critical access hospital, which "just means we were desperately needed in this area," said Lab Director James Noble.

In fact, prior to the center's opening Nov. 15, 2005, Sweet Springs had been without a hospital for almost a full 10 years.

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Noble stated HMC plans to invest about $10 million in the hospital immediately following the finalization of the purchase.

"We're going to order in surgical equipment, pay doctors to come up from Kansas City to do specialty clinics, rheumatology, podiatry, colonoscopies, all that takes equipment, expensive equipment. It takes doctors to operate that equipment, so they're bringing those services in and that will allow patients, instead of having to travel to Kansas City of Columbia, to be able to do those services right here," he said.

The plan, Noble said, was to also open a clinic in Concordia within six months after the sale took place, but that has already been done. Within 18 months of the sale, the hospital will also open a clinic in Alma.

The hospital also plans to get more heavily involved with telemedicine, which uses high-definition cameras and television screens, along with other equipment, to allow doctors to do long-distance diagnoses of the center's patients.

This saves the hospital money. Partnership with NightHawk Radiology Services, a US-based group with doctors in Australia, the US and Switzerland, "provides services 24 hours a day, seven days a week," as it says on www.nighthawkrad.net.

"We've already instituted it here with our radiology," said Noble, and added they plan to get into telecardiology and telepsychiatry.

"In fact, we're the only hospital in this area that's going to be practicing telemedicine to that degree."

Events of the past year have given Sweet Springs opportunities to look forward. Read the rest of this story and others featuring Sweet Springs businesses and organizations in the special insert in the Friday, Feb. 20, edition of The Marshall Democrat-News.