Update from the CEO: Engagement in 2012

As the year starts to come to a close and I think of the accomplishments of the Colorado Rural Health Center team, I know these accomplishments would not have been possible without the engagement of our members, sponsors and partners. This year CRHC tracked over fifteen bills and was successful in the passage of our first piece of major legislation, House Bill 1052 concerning the collection of health care workforce data from healthcare professionals. Thank you to our Policy and Legislative Committee for lending us your time and expertise. We are looking forward to the 2013 session and encourage you to continue to share your voice. As you think about sharing your voice, many communities engaged in Community Health Needs Assessments through our STRIDES Program. These communities took engagement and collaboration to a new level with Critical Access Hospitals, Rural Health Clinics, Federally Qualified Health Centers, and public health participation. As new partnerships are formed CRHC encourages you to continue to reach out to your community members and together you can continue to innovate and accomplish great things. As Dan Heath says, “Identify the bright spots and grow them!” One bright spot that should be pointed out is CRHC staff placed thirteen providers in safety net communities in Colorado. With the workforce shortages that Colorado is facing we are proud of these placements and the ability to contribute to the healthcare of the community. Rural communities have always had a strong sense of connection and collaboration. This collaboration can be seen through the participation of fourteen Critical Access Hospitals and six Rural Health Clinics in CRHC’s Improving Communications and Readmissions (iCARE) Program. In 2012, the participating hospitals readmission rate was only 2.8%. Some of the innovative interventions that were put into place are standing orders for pneumonia vaccinations, collaboration with social workers to follow-up with patients discharged to ensure understanding of medications and instructions, scheduling of appointments with the Primary Care Office, and home visits conducted by the Director of Nursing for patients that do not have an identified primary care physician. Finally, rural hospitals and clinics have been heavily engaged in implementing electronic medical records and remain committed. To date, 18 rural hospitals and 18 rural clinics have attested to stage 1 meaningful use. Congrats to all! I wish everyone Happy Holidays and CRHC staff look forward to working with each of you in the new year to identify your Bright Spots!

Save the Date!

Your Membership Benefits Expire Soon!

Give your organization the gift that keeps giving all year…a Colorado Rural Health Center 2013 Membership! A BIG thanks to those who have renewed their membership for the upcoming year. We remain loyally committed to ensuring our members have the resources and support they need to keep their communities healthy and vibrant. Renew your membership online or return your renewal invoice by mail/fax. Not a CRHC member? Visit our website to learn more about becoming a member and the valuable resources and http://coruralhealth.org/membership/m-benefits.htm available to our members.

CRHC Reactivates the GROW Program.

GROW is a proposal writing service available to groups, organizations, and communities in Colorado through Colorado Rural Health Center. The program goal is to provide proposal writing resources to ensure that comprehensive, affordable, high quality healthcare services are available at the local level in the state of Colorado. For more information, please click here. If you are interested in exploring this opportunity please contact Kendra Brooks (kb@coruralhealth.org – 303.996.9698.

Receive Up to $1,000 for a New Project, Program or Service! – Apply Now for a Seed Grant

If you are a rural organization and your project matches the Colorado Rural Health Center mission, you may be eligible for a Seed Grant of up to $1,000. Application deadlines are April 30th and September 30th. For further information, please review the guidelines and application form here. If you have any questions please get in touch with Kendra Brooks at kb@coruralhealth.org, 303.996.9698.

Rural Access to Emergency Devices (RAED) Training Funds

Colorado Rural Health Center has limited funding available through the Health Resources and Services Administration’s federal Office of Rural Health Policy RAED grant, to train first responders, as well as community members in CPR/AED courses. Entities eligible for this funding must be located in rural Colorado counties (contact Ron Seedorf for questions on eligibility) and courses must have been completed between 6/01/12 and 3/1/13. For more information, please follow this link: AED Training Funds. For all questions regarding this funding contact: Ron Seedorf at 970-302-9021 or rs@coruralhealth.org

Marva Jean Jackson (MJJ) Grants Update – A Membership Value

The Marva Jean Jackson Scholarship Program provides small grants that help pay for the training and/or education of a local healthcare provider are available for rural facilities or community groups. The Colorado Rural Health Center has made a couple of changes to the MJJ grant program for the coming year. First of all, applications will be accepted until November of 2013 and a CRHC committee of four will review the proposals. Secondly, the application has been updated with just a few minor changes. Please review both the flyer and application here! If you have any questions please get in touch with Kendra Brooks at kb@coruralhealth.org, 303.996.9698

Colorado Provider Recruitment is Expanding Their Scope!

CPR will be broadening our scope of recruitment services in 2013, and we need your help! Over the years, from our members and other healthcare facilities, we have found that there are certain providers that are difficult to recruit which we do not offer a service for. To individualize our services to specific needs, we would like feedback regarding which healthcare professionals you have the most difficulty recruiting. If you are a healthcare facility please, respond to this brief seven question survey by Friday, December 21st. Your response will be integral in developing a successful expanded scope program during the next year. If you have any questions, please contact Sara Leahy at sl@coruralhealth.org or 303.565.5848. Thank you!