New CRHC Members!

Last month Ryon Medical and Associates, Inc. and North Fork Medical Clinic joined CRHC's Membership - Welcome!! 

 

Ryon Medical is a family focused medical and mental health care practice. They specialize in the care of children, adolescents, adults, and seniors - treating the entire family. Located in La Junta, Colorado and sporting a great Facebook page - check them out to learn more!

North Fork Medical Clinic located in Paonia, Colorado recently joined CRHC's membership.  Located on the Western Slope this gem offers not only a spectacular view but an engaging community.  Check out the local chamber website for more information on the North Fork Vision 2020.  CRHC is already working with North Fork Medical Clinic to recruit a Family Nurse Practitioner, check out Colorado Provider Recruitment's website for more information.   

CRHC welcomes new member Gunnison Valley Family Physicians

Last month Gunnison Valley Family Physicians (GVFP) joined CRHC's Membership. GVFP is an independent rural clinic providing quality primary family healthcare to the Gunnison Valley since 1941.  Check out the GVFP staff and doctors or their new Healthy Living Program. 

GVFP Fun Fact: Did you know that GVFP includes a healthy recipe in their monthly newsletter?  Check out this month's issue or click here for a full list of recipes.  Definetely suggest this month's BBQ Chicken Sliders!

The staff at CRHC welcome Gunnison Valley Family Physicians!

A Word from Our Classic Sponsor: Unique Solutions Associates Inc.

Unique Solutions Associates Inc. (USA), a preferred provider with CRHC, is a creative platform that enables key decision makers in healthcare to reduce cost and improve productivity by connecting with USA’s panel of SolutionsProviders™. These SolutionsProviders™ offer unique products and services that produce exceptional, cost-reducing results.


Ed Cody, CEO of USA, was formerly a partner in a top 20 CPA and consulting firm. He led their healthcare consulting practice to become one of the largest 15 practices in the country. Ed created the USA platform to enable decision makers to quickly and confidently enter into relationships with pre-qualified, entrepreneurial companies known as USA SolutionsProviders™. Ed and the Associates of USA use their many years of industry experience and knowledge to create win-win relationships that continue for years.

Featured below are some of the many USA SolutionsProviders™ that can benefit your facility:

Capital Building Retirement Program - Exceptional retirement benefits for key employees. This Solution is structured to simultaneously “grow capital” and to “recruit and retain talent.”

Hospital Resource Optimization – Contractually guarantees all client hospitals new savings and net revenues in excess of a 7 to 1 ROI basis.

Investment Strategy and Advisory Services – Uses relationships that typically serve the largest and most successful foundations in the world to help your facility.

LED Lighting – LED lighting solutions that result in significant electric cost reduction and positive cash flow from the start.

Waste Utility and Cost Reduction – Specializes in substantially reducing waste disposal and recycling costs, as well as auditing utility bills for overcharges and errors. These audits are done on a risk-free and results-oriented basis.

Medical Supply Expense Reduction – This Provider has a 100% success rate in reducing healthcare providers’ medical supply costs. They work entirely on a success basis and only get paid when actual savings are received.

Web-based Nurse Scheduling – Addresses the needs of scheduling difficulties at medical institutions. Healthcare providers are able to closely monitor a multitude of factors that help improve efficiency and productivity while controlling costs, including staff scheduling, real-time productivity, incident command, census-based staffing, employee rewards and acuity-based staffing.

USA also has significant preferred partner relationships with other state and regional health networks. In these and other relationships, USA and its Unique SolutionsProviders™ have helped hundreds of hospitals and other healthcare providers. These solutions have resulted in several million dollars of savings and additional revenues.

USA is looking forward to bringing these unique solutions to the members of CRHC. To learn more, visit visit www.uniqsa.com or email Ed Cody at ecody@uniqsa.com.

Member of the Month: Heart of the Rockies Regional Medical Center

Heart of the Rockies Regional Medical Center (HRRMC) is a 25-bed Critical Access hospital in Salida Colorado. Located in the Upper Arkansas Valley, HRRMC currently serves over 16,000 residents. The hospital was originally established in 1885 as the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad hospital serving railroad employees. HRRMC provides a full range of services from complete family care to surgery.

HRRMC has been directed under the leadership of Ken Leisher since 2006, who recently announced his retirement. Ken has been at the forefront of HRRMC’s vision to be a world-class rural healthcare organization. “We are proud to offer a host of medical services and surgical specialties; a Family Birthing Center, Level IV Trauma Center, chemotherapy, and the latest diagnostic imaging technology, including digital mammography.” CRHC appreciates Ken’s dedication and contribution to the success of HRRMC over the years. We wish him every success in his retirement.

Robert “Bob” Morasko will take over as CEO on May 28th. Morasko brings with him over 20 years of experience as a CEO in the healthcare industry and recently served as the CEO at Campbell County Memorial Hospital in Gillette, Wyoming. Morasko earned a Master of Business Administration from City University in Washington and is a fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives. Read more about Bob in the HRRMC press release issued May 6th.

HRRMC has been a member of CRHC for several years and actively participates in a variety of CRHC services and programs, including educational workshops and webinars, annual conferences, the Small Rural Hospital Improvement Grant Program (SHIP), and currently contracts through CRHC’s Colorado Provider Recruitment program.

HRRMC constantly strives to improve the level of patient care it provides. For instance, on Wednesday, October 26th, 2011 HRRMC successfully attested for Stage 1 Meaningful Use of their Electronic Health Records making them the second Critical Access Hospital in Colorado to attest and apply for Medicare EHR Incentive Funds. A CRHC staff member reminisced of this journey stating, “They overcame many obstacles on their journey to Meaningful Use and could not have reached their goal without strong leadership and perseverance.” CRHC was delighted to have had the opportunity to work with Heart of the Rockies as its CO-REC partner to help guide and council them along the way. CRHC continues to support HRRMC and recently celebrated Dr. Loftin, Dr. Sadler and Dr. Moss’s successful attestation to Medicare Meaningful Use in February of this year.

Other notable accomplishments include being named as one of the nation's Best Hospitals for Patient Experience in Obstetrics by the 2013 Women's Choice Award from WomenCertified®. HRRMC was also named one of the HealthStrong™ Top 100 Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs) in the United States, which included only four Colorado hospitals.

Click here to learn more about Heart of the Rockies Regional Medical Center or check them out on Facebook.

We need your support! Consider partnering with CRHC as a Classic Sponsor.

Help us Educate, Advocate, Collaborate, and Innovate!

Sponsorship is for vendors, for-profit organizations and corporations, and other supportive parties. The fee is $2,000 and benefits are focused on connecting your organization to facilities in need of your products and services.

CRHC Classic Sponsors enjoy numerous unique benefits, including marketing exposure to CRHC’s 3,500 rural and urban constituents across the state and nation. These benefits have been specially designed for businesses who provide essential products and services to our rural facilities and communities. By signing on as a Classic Sponsor, you are supporting rural healthcare and gaining access to a vast audience of decision makers and leaders.

"A Word from our Classic Sponsor" is our monthly feature article submitted by current sponsors.  Each month a sponsor is selected to write an article to be included in the monthly e-newsletter.  In April, Mary Groves with Peck Shaffer and Williams, LLP featured an article about how tax-exempt financing can help build Colorado's healthcare and infrastructure.  Next month will feature Unique Solutions, CRHC's approved group purchasing vendor.  CRHC recognizes that our classic sponsors bring more to the table than great products and services; they bring expertise and a wealth of information that our members can benefit from.

Classic Sponsor benefits include:
•Your organization’s name and a link to your website posted on a Partners & Sponsors page of the CRHC website
•$100 off exhibiting at any CRHC event
•Discounts to attend or sponsor any CRHC event
•Recognition in the CRHC annual report
•Participation and sole sponsorship opportunities for webinars
•Ability to place a feature article about your company in our e-newsletter
•Opportunities for direct referrals

Sponsorship is good for 12 months. Click here to see our current 2013 supporters.  Interested in becoming a sponsor? Click here to become a Classic Sponsor or contact Bridgette Olson, Program Manager, with questions. 

Update from the CEO: Change and Transition

Two weeks ago during the Forum an attendee asked me “how are we going to do all of this and still have time to see the patient?” We both nervously laughed and said “well that’s a great question.” These are tough times and recent reports suggest rural quality is lacking. Last week the President released his budget for FY 2014 which proposes budget cuts to critical access hospital reimbursement in addition to the cuts that are taking place as part of sequestration. Meanwhile, more is being asked of our providers, clinics, and hospitals. Rural healthcare is all about relationships and person centered care so the thought of incorporating new requirements is daunting. Although the rural population makes up only nine percent of the state’s population, 17 percent of people between 65 and 84 live in rural counties along with 40 percent of Colorado residents older than 84. Nielsen Claritas, a consumer trending organization, projects that the 65 and over population in Colorado will grow by 24.32 percent by 2017 (CHI Data Repository). Collaboration has become a vital need in meeting the current needs of the aging populations while also preparing for the increasing demands of the future.

During the Forum we had the opportunity to hear from the Prowers County collaboration through the Community Health Needs Assessments (CHNAs). The Federally Qualified Health Center, High Plains Community Health Center, Prowers County Public Health, the hospital, Prowers Medical Center, and Southeast Mental Health Center together conducted a CHNA as an alternative to the traditional independent assessment. The desired outcome was to develop a plan that integrated public health and clinical services into a holistic approach that would maximize the access for their residents while also improving the overall health of their community. This is a model that is being encouraged statewide to bridge the gap between public health, clinical and behavioral health services.

Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs) have also been submitting data to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Hospital Compare voluntarily, but often their contributions are omitted from the website due to suppressed data, meaning the numbers are statistically insignificant when compared to the metropolitan contributions. Statistical analysis is frequently based off incidences per 100,000 people, which eliminates the ability to measure data in communities of less than 50,000. In late 2011 HRSA initiated a program called the Medicare Beneficiary Quality Improvement Program (MBQIP). MBQIP focuses on aggregating 1,121 CAHs’ data that is submitted through Hospital Compare and using this aggregated data to demonstrate the great quality work being conducted by CAHs throughout the country. Of the CAHs’ in Colorado reporting MBQIP data from fourth quarter 2011 through third quarter 2012 data shows:

Heart Failure Measures Set Average Data Score: 72%

Pneumonia Measures Set Average Data Score: 86%

Half of the state’s CAHs are engaged in CRHC’s Improving Communications and Readmissions (iCARE) program and this year we have added twelve rural clinics. The clinics are focused on the diabetic population and working in collaboration with the hospital team to improve care transitions. Some of our clinics will be starting a pilot test with a tool to assist clinics in communicating with specialists.

All of this work is being connected through a team based approach of addressing our rural communities’ needs in workforce, quality, health information technology or basic business operations and education. While you are learning to see and do things differently, so are we. We will continue to provide our valued members the most current information in healthcare reform and offer programs relevant to your needs.

Membership News

• Free Membership Webinar: Learn More About Member Benefits  -
• Members Only Listserv: News and Resources  -
• Student Members: Attend the Forum for FREE  -
• Join CRHC Membership!  -

Membership Webinar: Learn how to make the most of CRHC's Membership benefits

March 26, 2013

11:00-12:00

No registration fees

Click here to register!

We welcome new members and those who are curious about becoming a Colorado Rural Health Center member to join us for a brief webinar. We will discuss the membership benefits including discounts on events as well as benefits associated with workforce, clinic and hospital programs. We will also discuss our new student membership opportunities! The information provided during the webinar will specifically cater to new members and those exploring membership opportunities with the Colorado Rural Health Center.

Members Only

Current CRHC Members are urged to join our exclusive "Members Only" Listserv.  This is a great resource for educational resources, funding opportunities and other information that is a direct benefit to our members.  To sign up, click here.  

Student Members: Attend the Forum for FREE!

Student members receive the same benefits as organizational members, including: Access to educational resources Discounts to CRHC events, workshops and webinars Important updates and notifications through our e-newsletter and email bulletins. Student Membership is only $45.00. Register online.  Once you register as a student member, you are eligible to attend select sessions at the Forum for free. Email Bridgette at bo@coruralhealth.org to register for the Forum.

Join CRHC Membership!

Membership is for hospitals, clinics, students and other small organizations. The fee is based on the number of full-time employees in your organization, and benefits are focused on discounts on events and programs, access to grants and scholarships, technical assistance services, resources, and information sharing. Find out more about our MEMBERSHIP PROGRAM. Or click here to join CRHC's Membership today!