Rural Spotlight

Whitepaper: Three Ways to Improve Cybersecurity Amid Healthcare’s Cyber Crisis

August 27, 2025

Whitepaper: Three Ways to Improve Cybersecurity Amid Healthcare’s Cyber Crisis

Recently, a wave of cyberattacks forced healthcare executives to reckon with an uncomfortable truth: traditional cybersecurity strategies are no longer enough.

This report from Advisory Board shares how more than 10 experts – from provider organizations and digital health firms to consulting leaders – are redefining what cyber resilience means in an era of third-party interdependence

It outlines a strategic shift from reactive defense to collaborative, systemwide resilience – and the practical steps leaders are taking to manage operational risk, strengthen contracts and reduce exposure across complex networks.

Download the report to learn:

  • Ways that health systems are reassessing third-party vendor contracts and performance metrics,
  • Tactics to improve communication with partners and regulators to contain risk, and
  • Examples of resilience-driven models that ensure continuity during cyber incidents

Click Here to Download Whitepaper

2025 Missouri Preceptor Academy

August 27, 2025

2025 Missouri Preceptor Academy

Preceptors play a vital role in orienting new staff to their roles and integrating them into the department and organizational culture. The Preceptor Academy is designed to equip current and aspiring preceptors with essential education, tools and strategies to build strong preceptor-orientee relationships.

This interactive, one-day session will explore real-world scenarios to examine adult learning principles, analyze various learning methodologies, and apply strategies for giving and receiving feedback. Additionally, participants will define emotional intelligence and identify ways to use it for conflict management, coaching and professional development.

Objectives:

Upon completion of this program, participants will be able to:

  • Discuss techniques to promote constructive communication between the preceptee and the preceptor,
  • Demonstrate how to provide effective and constructive feedback,
  • Discuss the appropriate style of conflict resolution to use in specific situations,
  • Identify your individual personality type,
  • Recognize the importance of the preceptor role in integrating new health care professionals into the work setting,
  • Discuss strategies to improve the retention of health care professionals, and
  • Identify strategies the preceptor can use to support the development of the preceptee’s clinical judgment.

Target Audience:

Any registered nurse or allied health employee serving as a preceptor in a health care setting should attend. A preceptor is responsible for introducing students and/or new employees to the profession.

Cost: Complimentary for MHA Members

When:

This event takes place throughout Missouri. See the following list of dates, locations and event details:

  • Thursday, October 16 – Liberty, Missouri
  • Thursday, October 23 – Maryland Heights, Missouri
  • Wednesday, December 3 – December 4 – Virtual

Click Here to Learn More and Register

MHA Webinar: 2022 CDC Clinical Practice Guidelines: Best Practices for Pain Management, September 16

August 27, 2025

MHA Webinar: 2022 CDC Clinical Practice Guidelines: Best Practices for Pain Management, September 16

This training will review the 12 recommendations outlined in the CDC Clinical Practice Guidelines for acute, subacute, or chronic pain as it relates to opioid and other pain management prescribing. The speaker will explore alternatives to opioids and the importance of working alongside patients to determine the right path forward for them.

Objectives

Upon completion of this program participants will be able to:

  • Identify the five guiding principles of the Clinical Practice Guidelines,
  • Implement prescribing practices that align with the guidelines, and
  • Determine if opioid prescribing is appropriate and what alternatives are best in appropriate situations.

Cost: Complimentary to ALL Attendees

When: Tuesday, September 16, 12:00 p.m. – 1:30 p.m.

Click Here to Register

Webinar: Helping ASC Teams Address Worries About Healthcare Expenses, September 12

August 26, 2025

Webinar: Helping ASC Teams Address Worries About Healthcare Expenses, September 12

Join this important discussion to learn about the different stages of the healthcare journey and how you can have confident financial conversations to meet patients where they’re at.

This webinar will dive into practical ways healthcare teams can bui8ld comfort and confidence around financial conversations that can help your patients move forward with care and your practice build stronger, lasting relationship.

Learning Points:

  • Help the healthcare team become more comfortable having financial conversations with patients,
  • Understand healthcare financing trends and how financial conversations can impact patient care and practice operations,
  • Integrate patient financing solutions like CareCredit credit card to improve the payment process, support patient decision-making, and empower patients to accept recommended care, and
  • Gain expert insights into the different stages of the healthcare journey.

Cost: Free

When: Friday, September 12, 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Click Here to Register

NRHA Webinar: How Air Medical Transport Saves Lives After Traumatic Brain Injury – and What Rural Hospitals Risk Losing, September 11

August 26, 2025

NRHA Webinar: How Air Medical Transport Saves Lives After Traumatic Brain Injury – and What Rural Hospitals Risk Losing, September 11

In rural America, time and distance can be deadly – especially after a traumatic brain injury. This session explores the critical role of air medical services in bridging rural trauma care gaps and improving survival outcomes for patients with brain injuries.

Join Stephanie Queen, RN, a senior clinical leader with more than 20 years in healthcare operations and critical care, Peggy Reisher, MSW, a 30-year brain injury advocate and executive director of the Brain Injury Association of Nebraska, and Tim Chiarolanza, a brain injury survivor whose life was saved by air medical transport. Together, they’ll share compelling data, personal insights, and urgent policy concerns affecting air ambulance access.

Attendees will:

  • Understand the unique causes and long-term impacts of brain injury in rural communities,
  • Learn how air ambulances deliver ICU-level care en route and improve TBI survival rates, and
  • Hear how current Medicare reimbursement gaps threaten access to these life-saving services.

Cost: Free

When: Thursday, September 11, 1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.

Click Here to Register

NRHA Webinar: How to Assess Capital Readiness and Align Your Team for a Successful Project, September 10

August 26, 2025

NRHA Webinar: How to Assess Capital Readiness and Align Your Team for a Successful Project, September 10

Capital projects in rural healthcare come with high stakes – and limited room for missteps. Often, the biggest roadblocks aren’t funding or feasibility. They’re mindset, misalignment, and unclear next steps.

In this session, Brian Haapala – who has spent more than 20 years guiding rural hospitals through successful capital planning – introduces the S.C.O. P. E. method, a practical framework to evaluate readiness, align leadership, and build a plan that’s both strategic and fundable.

You’ll also explore the Capital Planning Styles Matrix to better understand how leadership approaches impact momentum – from early strategy through execution.

Attendees will learn how to:

  • Recognize their team’s current capital planning style,
  • Understand how leadership mindset influences progress, and
  • Identify immediate steps to build clarity and alignment

Whether you’re planning, mid-project, or stalled – this session offers a clear and actionable reset.

Cost: Free

When: Wednesday, September 10, 1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.

Click Here to Register

NRHA Webinar: 90 days to Dialysis: How a 24-Bed CAH Built a Sustainable Nephrology Program for Local Patients, September 4

August 26, 2025

NRHA Webinar: 90 days to Dialysis: How a 24-Bed CAH Built a Sustainable Nephrology Program for Local Patients, September 4

What does it take for a small critical access hospital to launch 24/7 inpatient nephrology – and begin building a community dialysis unit – in just three months?

At McKenzie Health in Watford City, ND, leadership saw the need: 36 dialysis patients in their county and the nearest home dialysis facility 180 miles away. Their response? A strategic, phased approach that started with inpatient nephrology and swing-bed dialysis – and laid the foundation for long-term outpatient expansion.

In this session, Dr. Rubin Chandran – a board-certified nephrologist with 20+ years of rural experience – shares the roadmap any CAH can follow to do the same.

You’ll Learn:

  • The 90-day implementation playbook for inpatient nephrology and acute dialysis,
  • The “4 Ps” of due diligence: physicians, prevalence, pipeline, and payer mix,
  • How to use inpatient services to de-risk outpatient expansion, and
  • What it takes to plan, build, and manage a CMS-compliant dialysis unit.

If your hospital is looking to expand care, reduce transfers, and capture new revenue while meeting a critical need – this is your session.

Cost: Free

When: Thursday, September 4, 1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.

Click Here to Register

Wanted: Rural Health Champions

August 25, 2025

 

Wanted: Rural Health Champions

The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services, Office of Rural Health and Primary Care is seeking nominations for 2025 Missouri Rural Health Champions. This award is designed to honor a minimum of one individual and one group whose contributions are making a difference in Missouri rural healthcare through collaboration, education, innovation, and communication.

Who Might be a Rural Health Champion:

  • Providers
  • Clinic managers and/or staff
  • Rural Hospitals
  • Pharmacists
  • Therapists
  • Nurses
  • Front desk staff
  • Administrators
  • Anyone who works in rural healthcare

Nomination deadline is October 1, 2025.

Click Here to Nominate Your Rural Health Champion

Whitepaper: Care More, Code Less – How to Navigate CMS Updates

August 25, 2025

Whitepaper: Care More, Code Less – How to Navigate CMS Updates

Recent CMS changes removed over 2,000 diagnostic codes and introduced 200-plus that don’t map to reimbursement under previous rules. For health systems and ACOs, missing these changes can translate into massive revenue losses and poor risk scoring.

Health systems like Community Health Network have responded decisively. By embedding hierarchical condition category (HCC) alerts into its EHR workflows, the organization added more than $13 million to their bottom line. Bellin Health raised its risk adjustment factor (RAF) score by 16%. Bon Secours Mercy Health documented over 35,000 HCCs in just six months.

This report details how systems are operationalizing HCC accuracy amid shifting CMS rules – with proven returns.

Download for real-world lessons on:

  • Avoiding missed reimbursement under CMS’ new coding structure,
  • Embedding EHR-based HCC alerts to boost risk scores, and
  • Discover how health systems boost risk adjustment and reimbursement with streamlined HCC coding.

Click Here to Download Whitepaper

Webinar: Responsible AI in Primary Care: Driving Quality, Trust and Transformation, August 26

August 25, 2025

Webinar: Responsible AI in Primary Care: Driving Quality, Trust and Transformation, August 26

AI is transforming primary care – but success hinges on how it’s deployed. Health systems leading the way on AI adoption aren’t just investing in smarter algorithms; they’re embedding AI into clinical workflows while preserving trust, safety and the patient-clinician relationship.

In this panel, hear from leaders on what responsible AI looks like in action and what it takes to get clinicians on board. This will be a practical conversation grounded in real-world cases, governance strategies and measurable results.

Join to Explore:

  • How systems are reducing clinician burden and surfacing key insights at the point of care,
  • Strategies to embed AI into workflows without disrupting the human connection, and
  • Governance approaches that ensure responsible, scalable AI deployment across primary care.

Cost: Free

When: Tuesday, August 26, 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Click Here to Register