BANGOR – Four health facilities in Maine will receive a total of $1.31 million to provide health care for patients and education for health professionals in rural Maine, officials from the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced on Monday.

The Aroostook Medical Center in Presque Isle will receive a $162,543 grant to continue education through Husson College by interactive video.

The money allows rural health care professionals

to access educational programs in undergraduate and graduate nursing, physical therapy and occupational therapy.

The grant money will allow hospitals and health agencies in Maine to provide better health care to folks in rural areas, officials said.

Physical therapists in rural hospitals will be able to access training through bigger hospitals and home health care nurses will be able to use laptops to transfer patient information to doctors.

In Waterville, the HealthReach Network will receive $500,000 to purchase computer equipment that will be used to link rural residents in Somerset, Kennebec, Waldo, Lincoln, Piscataquis, Sagadahoc and Penobscot counties with health care facilities.

Specialists at larger hospitals will be able to connect through video with patients at smaller health clinics and help consult without the patient traveling to the larger community, officials said.

In Bangor, the St. Joseph’s Health Care Foundation will receive $494,750 to improve access to specialty care for underserved northern Maine patients and improve continuing medical education for rural health professionals.

It will link six new rural sites to a previously established telemedicine system using a high-speed broadband connection and provide greater access to specialty care.

The upgrade to the new system will allow physicians to review a patient’s medical chart, hold a distance visit with the patient in real-time while explaining a treatment plan, and use a two-way white board to illustrate points to the patients.

The Visiting Nurse Service of Southern Maine and Seacoast New Hampshire will use grant funds to expand access to health care, enhance the effectiveness of home health services, reduce costs associated with delivering care and expand educational opportunities.