Announcements
Save the Date for IRHA Conference: Rural Resilience: The Whole Picture
Monday, October 28, 2024
Registration and details still to come.
Registration Now Open: NRHA’s Rural Health Clinic and Critical Access Hospital conferencesSeptember 24-27, 2024, in Kansas City, MO
These conferences offer more than 40 educational and networking opportunities designed for clinic and hospital professionals and board members serving rural America. |
Rural Health Fellows Leadership ProgramEach year, NRHA selects 10 to 15 highly motivated individuals who have proven their dedication to improving the health of rural Americans through their educational or professional experience with yearlong, intensive training that develops leaders who can articulate a clear and compelling vision for rural America.
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Seeking Participation: 2024 Rural Health Hackathon
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Center for Medicare and Medication Innovation (“Innovation Center”) is excited to announce the 2024 Rural Health Hackathon – a series of in-person, collaborative sessions designed to generate and construct creative and actionable ideas to address rural health challenges.
In-Person Hackathon: Engage with other dedicated experts to solve some of the toughest challenges facing rural communities through one of the in-person convenings hosted in three cities this summer:
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New Funding: CMS Transforming Maternal Health (TMaH) Model
Apply by September 20, 2024
The TMaH Model’s primary focus is improving health outcomes for mothers and their infants who are enrolled in Medicaid and Childrens’ Health Insurance Program (CHIP). Under TMaH, selected state Medicaid agencies will receive targeted technical support to develop a whole-person approach to pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum care.
Save the Date: TMaH Model Overview Webinar
Thursday, July 18, 2024 at 3pm EST
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HRSA Nurse, Education, Practice, Quality and Retention – Workforce Expansion Program
Apply by July 26, 2024
HRSA’s Bureau of Health Workforce aims to increase the supply of nurses in rural and underserved areas, specifically in acute and long-term care settings. Eligible applicants are public and private institutions of higher education and federally recognized Native American tribal governments. |
Direct Care: A Chorus of Compassion
October 7, 2024
Your participation in this conference can be key to rebuilding your passion and to avoiding falling flat from burnout. You will experience programs for self-care, professional and skill development, mental health, and networking with the ensemble of direct care workers and family caregivers in attendance. The day will crescendo in fun and motivation and send you away feeling harmonious and in unison. Become a Sponsor and Exhibitor – Deadline June 30, 2024 |
News
Doctors say loneliness and social isolation should be discussed in health visits
Physicians are calling for primary care doctors to ask patients about loneliness and social isolation at routine health checks and when managing chronic diseases as emerging research suggests it could be just as important as checking blood pressure, heart health and lifestyle factors for health outcomes.
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UnityPoint receives Maternal Health Excellence Grant
UnityPoint Health-Grinnell Regional Medical Center was awarded the Center of Excellence Grant by the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services.
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HRSA Announces $15 Million in New Investments to Address Maternal Health Needs and Disparities in Rural Communities
HRSA is making nearly $8 million in Rural MOMS awards and launching a new program with approximately $7 million in available funding to address maternal health needs in the South and Midwest.
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Mental and Physical Health Status of US Health Care Workers
This article compares health outcomes across various occupations and settings, controlling for sociodemographic factors known to influence health, and also provides a comparison with the overall US population.
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UI Health Care eyes $74M maternity expansion, complementing $41M NICU expansion
This article compares health outcomes across various occupations and settings, controlling for sociodemographic factors known to influence health, and also provides a comparison with the overall US population.
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Closing of Rural Hospitals Leaves Towns With Unhealthy Real Estate
KFF explores the ripple effect of rural hospital closures on their small towns.
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Resources
State Fact Sheets
The Economic Research Service (ERS) at the U.S. Department of Agriculture provides the latest on population, income, poverty, food security, education, and more in State Fact Sheets. County-level poverty rates, population change, educational attainment, and unemployment rates/median household income have been updated in County-Level Data Sets.
Publications
U.S. Maternal Mortality Crisis: An International Comparison
Pregnancy and childbirth are far more dangerous for American women — especially Black women — than for women in other high-income nations, according to a Commonwealth Fund study of maternal health outcomes across 14 countries.
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27 Hospitals Have Converted to Rural Emergency Hospitals since January 2023
Since January 2023, 27 rural hospitals in the U.S. have converted to emergency hospitals in order to remain in operation. Under the new designation, these facilities continue to provide emergency and outpatient services but offer no inpatient care. A report by the Commonwealth Fund and the Bassett Research Institute explored some of the other strategies rural hospitals are pursuing to stay afloat.
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New Research on Rural Hospital Profitability from 2018 to 2023
Profitability of rural hospitals in 2020-21 and 2021-22 was influenced by the Public Health Emergency (PHE) funding distributed during the COVID-19 pandemic. The following briefs examine hospital profitability from 2018 to 2023, taking PHE funding into account.
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Psychiatric Nursing Workforce Survey: Results and Implications
Nursing must plan for significant retirements in the PMH workforce in next 5 years. Hospital-based practice continues to dominate PMH-RN roles but might be expanded to community-based settings teaming with PMH-APRNs in outpatient sites. Increasing the diversity of the workforce should be prioritized.
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Recruitment and retention of rural allied health professionals: a scoping review
The purpose of this study was to understand what literature exists to comprehend demographics and predicted trends of rural allied health professionals (AHPs), person factors of rural AHPs, and recruitment and retention of rural AHPs.
Webinars and Podcasts
Join the Caregiving Conversation: Tune in to Uncared For
Some 42 million Americans are caregivers for a sick or frail loved one, and that number is only rising. How we’re going to care for everyone is at the heart of season 2 of Uncared For, a podcast produced by Lemonada Media with Commonwealth Fund support. It turns a spotlight on unpaid caregiving through intimate conversations with family caregivers, who talk about the highs and lows they’re experiencing as they strive to ensure their loved ones age with dignity.
Is Rural Emergency Hospital the Best Option for You?
The FORHP-funded Rural Emergency Hospital Technical Assistance Center (the Rural Health Redesign Center) provides a recording of the June 6 webinar. Technical experts discuss a new federal designation, the Rural Emergency Hospital, a provider type designed to address concerns that some rural hospitals would not be able to sustain operations and could be at risk of closure.
Helping Community Health Workers Succeed: Ideas from an Innovative Program
Experts praise community health workers as the keys to building a more equitable and fair health care system in America. Is there a way to unlock more success for hiring and retaining them?