LUMBERTON — Southeastern Health has received a $142,000 grant through the North Carolina Healthcare Foundation’s COVID-19 Fill the Gap Response Fund.

The funding will be used to expand virtual wellness education and increase enrollment for Southeastern Health’s MyChart electronic medical information portal.

The expansion of the organization’s telehealth services will allow for increased medical provider access while maintaining the safety of our community. Technology-enabled equipment to assist providers with telehealth visits will be incorporated into the virtual wellness platform. Mobile kiosks will be placed throughout the county to allow use of telehealth services where internet accessibility is a barrier.

“COVID-19 has required a transition to a more virtual health model and for this reason we felt it was important to educate our patients about the resources available to them to more conveniently manage their health through technology and programs such as the already-existing MyChart portal,” said Lori Dove, Southeastern Health vice president and chief administrative officer Lori Dove.

Dove’s responsibility areas include Southeastern Health’s Community Health Services department, which is facilitating the grant.

“This tool empowers patients to better communicate with their provider, request prescription refills, and view test results from any mobile device or computer,” Dove said. “We recently added a Find Care Now feature which allows users to view wait times for our walk-in clinics and emergency room to enable them to make more informed decisions about convenient options for care.”

The North Carolina Healthcare Foundation distributed a request for proposals in May to healthcare, human service, safety net, and grassroots organizations for projects addressing health disparities created or worsened by the pandemic. Nineteen grant awards were approved, with an average size of $87,635. Leading providers of funds for the initiative include the David A. Tepper Foundation, Kate B. Reynolds Charitable Trust, State Employees’ Credit Union Foundation, and The Duke Endowment.

“The Fill the Gap Response Fund was formed to support North Carolina’s people and places disproportionately impacted by COVID-19,” said Julia Wacker, North Carolina Healthcare Foundation senior vice president. “The pandemic has exacerbated health and economic challenges already present in rural communities and vulnerable populations around the state. They are often hit harder and take longer to recover.”

For more information about Southeastern Health’s Fill the Gap initiative, call 910-734-3657.