February 17, 2023

Webinar – Swing Bed Quality Reporting Program

Date: March 14, 2023

Time: 11:00 AM CT

Stroudwater Associates invites you to join the conversation about Swing Bed Quality Reporting. This discussion will include best practices around the 5 key Swing Bed metrics along with Missouri data that can be shared with referral providers.

Who should attend:

• All Swing Bed program staff
• Administrators
• Anyone interested in improving Swing Bed Quality Reporting

Register Here

February 8, 2023

CDC’s Public Health Associate Program Host Site Application Opens

USDA RD is pleased to share the following announcement from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:

Apply to become a PHAP host site!

CDC’s Center for State, Tribal, Local, and Territorial Support has announced the opening of the Public Health Associate Program (PHAP) host site application, which will close on February 28, 2023. As a host site, an early career public health professional will be placed at your organization for a two-year assignment and will gain experience in public health program operations while helping to increase your agency’s capacity.

Organizations that serve rural communities, from state, tribal, local, and territorial public health agencies; nongovernmental organizations such as community-based organizations, public health institutes and associations; and academic institutions are encouraged to apply.

The host site will receive benefits including:

• Insights and valuable skillsets from the CDC-funded associate placed at their organization.
• A partnership with the CDC and added resources to address staff shortages and funding gaps.
• Online learning opportunities and access to CDC subject matter expertise.

PHAP senior staff are available for one-on-one or group information briefings and webinars. If you are interested in setting up a briefing, please email PHAP@cdc.gov. Rural-serving entities are encouraged to submit host site applications to increase public health services for rural communities.

Find more information on the CDC’s PHAP host site page. Applications must be submitted by February 28, 2023.

January 26, 2023

A Redesigned Ruralcenter.org

Introducing the new ruralcenter.org – the online home of the National Rural Health Resource Center, the leading technical assistance and knowledge center focused on rural health.

Following a more than six-month-long design and development process, they are officially launching the new site. Once you visit the revamped ruralcenter.org and begin exploring, you’ll find a layout and design that’s fresh, modern, and inviting, a site that provides an improved user experience for visitors.

You Spoke. They Listened.

Even before they officially surveyed website users and key stakeholders this past year, they heard your comments. “It’s too text heavy.” “Sometimes it’s difficult to find the things I’m looking for.” Those comments have played a vital role in the redesign process. Thank you for your willingness to speak up and share your feedback.

New Look. Same High-Quality Resources.

The “look” of the site has certainly changed: There’s less text. More images and videos. More color. A more streamlined navigation. But the resources and events that you’ve come to expect — reporting templates, toolkits, webinars, podcasts, and so much more — are all still here. They’re just easier to find, download, and use.

You’ll also Notice…

In addition to a website redesign, The Center’s brand has been refreshed. The new look features abstract icons that depict a landscape with a crossroads in the foreground and a rising sun in the horizon. The new graphical elements in the logo help to communicate much of what The Center is about: The pathways crossing signify togetherness and collaboration; the sun conveys positivity and possibilities.

What Do You Think?

What do you think of the new site? Are you able to navigate it easily? Can you find the guides and toolkits that you’re looking for? And what about the new brand logo? What’s your gut feeling? If you’re willing to share your thoughts about the site and logo, please email mmcgill@ruralcenter.org.

December 21, 2022

Delta States Rural Development Network Grant Program -HRSA-23-031

The Health Resources and Services Administration’s (HRSA) Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP) will be awarding approximately $12 million through 12 grants for the 2023 Delta States Rural Development Network Grant Program (Delta). This three-year program will support integrated health care networks to achieve efficiencies; expand access to, coordinate, and improve the quality of basic health care services and associated health outcomes; and strengthen the rural health care system as a whole.

Applications are due March 22, 2023.

HRSA intends for the Delta Program to address gaps in service, enhance systems of care, and expand capacity of the local rural health care system. The Delta Program provides organizations the resources needed to help rural Delta communities develop partnerships and jointly address health topics in the following areas: 1) diabetes, 2) cardiovascular disease, 3) obesity, 4) acute ischemic stroke, 5) chronic lower respiratory disease, 6) cancer, and 7) unintentional injury/substance use.

The eligibility criteria for this program have been reauthorized to include all domestic public and private, nonprofit and for-profit, entities with demonstrated experience serving, or the capacity to serve, rural underserved populations. This includes faith-based, community-based organizations, tribes, tribal organizations, and State Offices of Rural Health (SORH). The applicant organization must represent a network that includes at least three or more health care provider organizations and at least 66 percent (two-thirds) of network partners must be located in a HRSA-designated rural area.

All activities supported by this program must be provided in HRSA-designated rural areas (as defined by the Rural Health Grants Eligibility Analyzer) within the Delta service region.

The Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for FY23 Delta States Rural Development Network Grant Program can be viewed here: https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=340905

Interested applicants may attend a live webinar on Wednesday, January 11, 2023, from 2-3:30 p.m. ET. 

Audio Conference details:

• Call-In Number: 833-568-8864
• Participant Code: 14527157

Webinar recordings may be requested after the webinar by emailing DeltaStatesGrantPrgm@hrsa.gov.

For any questions on the Delta Program or this NOFO, please contact Diana Alatorre, Delta Program Coordinator, DeltaStatesGrantPrgm@hrsa.gov.

December 20, 2022

 Help Map the Broadband Gap

Missourians have until January 13, 2023, to file challenges to FCC maps of broadband coverage in time to affect our share of more than $42 billion in funding through the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program.

Check the FCC Broadband Map to see if your community is listed correctly.

Connecting All Missourians – Office of Broadband Development Flyer

For more information, please see the Missouri Department of Economic Development (DED) Press Release.

December 16, 2022

2022 – 2023 Rural Healthcare Provider Transition  Project (RHPTP)  Cohort

On behalf of the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP), the National Rural Health Resource Center is excited to announce the 2022-2023 cohort of small rural hospitals and certified rural health clinics selected to participate in the third year of the Rural Healthcare Provider Transition Project.

1. Atrium Health Floyd Polk Medical Center, Cedartown, GA
2. Meeker Memorial Hospital & Clinics, Litchfield, MN
3. Mercy Health-Marcum and Wallace Hospital, Irvine, KY
4. Swift County Benson Health Services, Benson, MN
5. Northern Maine Medical Center, Fort Kent, ME
6. Speare Memorial Hospital, Plymouth, NH

Organizations were selected based on leadership, commitment, and organizational preparedness for transitioning to alternative payment and care delivery models in the future. We look forward to working with these organizations over the next year and sharing their successes and outcomes in future newsletter editions. Congratulations!