Geisinger Health System, based in Danville, Pa., has been given a $16 million grant to develop the Keystone Beacon Community as part of the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services' Beacon Community cooperative program. However, there will be no direct influence on Bradford or Sullivan counties during the first three years of the program.

According to a press release from Geisinger, the financial support will permit Geisinger to extend the benefits of its patient-focused health information technology (IT) programs to Columbia, Montour, Northumberland, Snyder and Union provinces and offer enhancements in patient results within a three-year time period.

The release affirmed that the objective of this initiative is to show that enhanced patient results can be achieved as a result of health IT beyond the walls of institutions such as Geisinger.

James Walker, M. D., FACP, Chief Health Information Officer at Geisinger, said in the release, "Through Keystone Beacon Community, we will not only deliver improved outcomes in low-cost, usable ways for the five initial counties, but we'll be preparing to roll the service out regionally and beyond".

He said that the plan is to create a self-sustaining business model, which will enhance healthcare for all individuals, and not just those served by Geisinger.