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Greetings!
This edition of Rural Route includes the State Profile for Colorado and information on a manual recently mailed from TASC to all Flex Coordinators. Also included is playback information for the November 13th TASC 90 Call.
If you are interested in assisting TASC to plan for the 2010 Flex Conference, please see the below article and contact Nicole Clement. Please note that this is the last month that the two current Book Club books will be offered. Please see below for additional information on the current Book Club offerings.
Sincerely,
Tracy Morton
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Farewell and Welcome!
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TASC and the Rural Health Resource Center bid farewell and best wishes to the following Flex Program personnel:
- Jerry Coopey, long time employee of the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy. Jerry was instrumental in the development of Flex and was the first Project Officer.
- Harold (Brownie) Brown, Rural Health Programs Manager for the Office of Primary Care and Rural Health, Alabama Department of Public Health
- Gloria Wong, Chief, Hawaii State Office of Rural Health
We wish you all the best in your future endeavours!
TASC and the Rural Health Resource Center also extend a very warm welcome to:
- Vance Eggers, Health Progam Manager and State Office Director/Flex Coordinator for the Office of Primary Care and Rural Health, Utah Department of Health
- Madhumita Chatterjee, Rural Health Manager and Flex Coordinator for the New Hampshire State Office of Rural Health
- Debra Robbins, Flex Coordinator for the Office of Primary Care and Rural Health, Alabama Department of Public Health
Welcome and please contact TASC with any questions. |
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New Staff or Contact Info Changes?
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Do you have new staff to your State Flex Program or changes to your contact information?
If so, please click here to email TASC! |
State Profiles
In order for the State Flex programs to network together, TASC is currently contacting the Flex programs and the State Offices of Rural Health to collect information on their staff members, major program areas, and successful activities. The information will be used to facilitate communication among other State Flex programs with similar interests and will be highlighted in TASC's electronic newsletter, Rural Route. The state profiles will also be uploaded onto the TASC Web site.
Colorado State Profile
Flex Program Staff
State Office Director
Lou Ann Wilroy
(303) 832-7493
Specialty Areas / Background
Healthcare management consulting, hospital administration, and clinic management. Lou Ann has previous experience as a rural outreach coordinator for Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, and Wyoming.
State Office Director since 2007
Flex Coordinator
Specialty Areas / Background
Before coming to Colorado Rural Health Center (CRHC), Jennifer worked for several years with health insurance programs for underserved children and families.
Flex Coordinator since 2008
Program Director
Cari Fouts (303) 565-5847 cf@coruralhealth.orgSpecialty Areas / BackgroundCari has over 15 years of healthcare experience in direct patient care, outreach and marketing, and quality and patient safety. She has worked extensively with both rural and urban hospitals. Program Director since 2008
Program Assistant
Sheri Glischinski
(303) 565-5847
Specialty Areas / Background
Sheri's specialties are research, event planning, health information technology, database and record management.
Program Assistant since 2008
Most Significant Flex Program Achievement for Colorado:
Development of the Peer Review Network and the Quality Improvement Peer Network.
Top Three Flex Activities in 2009 for Colorado:
- Supporting CAHs through capacity building grant opportunities
- Quality and performance improvement activities
- Overall system improvement and efficiencies
Colorado Flex Program Success Story
In response to interest from Colorado's CAHs, the Colorado Rural Health Center (CRHC) partnered with the Colorado Center for Nursing Excellence to offer a Nurse Leader Development Course. The training targeted frontline nurse leaders interested in effectively leading and managing care delivery within healthcare facilities. The course focused on improving leadership through skill-building in change management, effective communication, and dealing with personnel problems. Nurse Leaders who attended the course learned ways to create a culture which encourages the development of each staff nurse while assuring patient safety, satisfaction, quality of care, and increasing staff nurse retention.
Colorado Flex Program Details
Location: Colorado Rural Health Center, a non-profit organization
State Rural Health Plan - Colorado
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 Raising Funds for Rural Health Care Manual
TASC recently mailed a copy of a newly released manual to
each Flex Coordinator. "Raising Funds for Rural Health Care: An Introductory Manual" lays out the basics for establishing a structured process of ongoing philanthropic resource development through annual funds, capital campaigns, and endowment.
There will be technical assistance calls for the Flex Coordinators on how to best use the manual. The calls will be identical so you only need to join one.
- Date: December 1, 2009 and December 3, 2009 from 2 p.m. - 3 p.m. Central Time
- Purpose: To go through, with the authors, the manual and how to best use it.
- Please have the manual in front of you for the call as it will be an opportunity to ask the experts questions.
Additionally, the manual can be downloaded from the TASC Web site by clicking here. The file is quite large so it may take some time to load on your computer. If you have any questions, please contact Nicole Clement or Tracy Morton. |
| TASC 90 Playback Information
If you were unable to attend the TASC 90 Conference Call on November 13th, the conference playback will be available until December 12, 2009. Topics on the call:
- ORHP Update - Michelle Goodman, ORHP
- Flex Monitoring Team Update - Mark Holmes, North Carolina Rural Health Research and Policy Analysis Center, University of North Carolina
- TASC Update - Terry Hill, TASC
- HIT Workforce Summit Update - Marty Witrak, College of St. Scholastica and Sally Buck, Rural Health Resource Center
- EMS Workforce Update - Daniel Patterson, University of Pittsburgh
- HRSA Primary Care Workforce Summit Update - Michelle Goodman, ORHP
The playback is now available and can be accessed at:
- Replay Call In Number: 1-888-203-1112 (toll free)
- Passcode: 63560928
Flex Coordinators, State Office Directors, and other Flex personnel are invited to participate in quarterly TASC 90 Conference Calls and their playback. For more information, please contact Nicole Clement. |
New TASC Advisory Committee Members
TASC would like to introduce two new TASC Advisory Committee members, beginning in Program Year 11. Joyce Beck, CEO of Thayer County Health Services in Hebron, Nebraska and Pat Schou, Executive Director of the Illinois Critical Access Hospital Network (ICAHN). We are very pleased they have joined the Advisory Committee! For a complete list of TASC Advisory Committee members, please click here. |
 Are You Interested in Flex Conference Planning?
TASC is beginning to plan for the 2010 Flex Conference and is developing a planning committee of State Office Directors and Flex Coordinators. The committee will meet approximately three times via conference call between December 2009 and February 2010 to provide suggestions on the conference agenda, content, and speakers. The 2010 Flex Conference is tentatively planned for July 13-14, 2010 in Minneapolis, MN. If you are interested in particpating in the planning committee, please contact Nicole Clement. |
| Dr. Blumenthal's Goals for the HITECH Act
On November 12, 209, David Blumenthal, MD, MPP, National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, released a message on the impact of the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinic Health Act (HITECH Act of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act). The message also reiterated the goal of the HITECH Act, which "is to make care better for patients, and to make it patient-centered. Information policy and health IT policy should serve that goal." Dr. Blumenthal goes on to discuss barriers to information exchange that the HITECH Act eliminates including commerical, economic, and technical barriers while providing "building blocks for information exchange across jurisdictions." To read Dr. Blumenthal's complete message of his vision for health information technology, please click here. |
| Upcoming Educational Opportunities
December 1, 2009
Sponsor: Institute for Healthcare Improvement
Format: Conference Call
Sponsor Description: For organizations seeking to make their care more patient centered and improve their survey results, the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) is offiering its latest Expedition, Improving Your HCAHPS Score Through Patient-Centered Care. This web-based program will teach organizations how to implement process changes and reliably put in place practices proven to improve HCAHPS scores. Beyond improving their score, hospitals will build their capacity for change and employ new methods that will lead to truly patient-centered care.
Cost: $750 per team
December 15, 2009
Sponsor: QHR Learning Institute
Format: Online Course
Sponsor Description: Coding in a CAH is widely misunderstood, with opinions running to extremes. Attend this session presented by Linda Coe, QHR Senior Consultant, and learn what's really different about inpatient and outpatient coding in a CAH, how coding effects compliance, and your final settlement. The means may have changed, but the goal is still the same.....the right payment for what you really did. Bust the myths with this on-line program for department managers and coders alike.
Cost: QHR-affiliated organizations: $175 per program connection. Non-QHR-affiliated organizations: $239 per program connection.
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TASC Book Club Books
- TASC offer multiple new Book Club books each quarter. We ask that you please choose one selection during the quarter. The TASC Book Club is open to all State Offices of Rural Health and Flex Program Staff (limit one book per state per quarter). Please contact Jere-lyn Fern if you have any questions on this new method for the TASC Book Club or would like to order a book from the selections below.
Emergency Medical Services: At the Crossroads (Future of Emerg ency Care)
Authored by the Committee on the Future of Emergency Care in the United States Health System, Emergency Medical Services: At the Crossroads (Future of Emergency Care) "examines the operational structure of EMS by presenting an in-depth
analysis of the current organization, delivery, and financing of these
types of services and systems. By addressing its strengths, limitations,
and future challenges this book draws upon a range of concerns: the
evolving role of EMS as an integral component of the overall health
care system; EMS system planning, preparedness, and coordination at the
federal, state, and local levels; EMS funding and infrastructure
investments; EMS workforce trends and professional education; and EMS
research priorities and funding."
Leading your Healthcare Organization to Excellence
Leading Your Healthcare Organization to Excellence "uses the
well-known Baldrige Criteria as a road map for increasing care quality
at your organization. Rather than an ill-defined management fad, the
Baldrige Criteria provide an efficient outline for quality improvement
that has delivered proven results across many industries, including
healthcare. The criteria can help you pinpoint trouble spots and
prioritize improvement activities. Use the book's many helpful tools,
including key points, self-assessments, and reflections, to adapt the
Baldrige model to the specific needs of your organization. Positive
changes in the attitudes, services, processes, measurement, planning,
leadership, and patient satisfaction at your organization can all be
inspired by the Baldrige Criteria."
Request Your Copy of one Book Club Book Today! |
Save the Dates
Below please find a list of upcoming events in the next four months. If you have an event that you would like posted, please contact Tracy Morton.
The 21st Annual Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) National Forum on Quality Improvement in Health Care will be December 6-9, 2009 at the World Center Marriott in Orlando, Florida.
December 9-11, 2009 NRHA Minority and Multicultural Health Conference The National Rural Health Association (NRHA) Minority and Multicultural Health Conference will be December 9-11, 2009 in Memphis, Tennessee at The Peabody Memphis. This year's theme is "Blueprints for Success: Ideas for Change". January 19, 2010 Indiana Rural Health Public Policy ForumThe 8th Annual Indiana Rural Health Public Policy Forum will be held at the Hyatt Regency Downtown in Indianapolis, Indiana on January 19, 2010. January 25-27, 2010 NRHA Rural Health Policy InstituteThe National Rural Health Association (NRHA) Rural Health Policy Institute will be January 25-27, 2010 at the Capital Hilton in Washington, DC.
The 23rd Annual American Hospital Association (AHA) Rural Health Care Leadership Conference will be February 7-10, 2010 in Pheonix, Arizona at the Pointe Hilton Squaw Peak Resort.
The 14th Annual South Carolina Rural Health Conference will be held at the Wild Dunes Resort on the Isle of Palms, South Caroline from March 17-18, 2010.
The Northwest Regional Critical Access Hospital Conference will be March 23, 2010 at the Red Lion Hotel at the Park in Spokane, Washington. This conference is produced and supported by state offices of rural health for Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington.
The Northwest Regional Rural Health Conference will be March 24-25, 2010 at the Red Lion Hotel at the Park in Spokane, Washington. This conference is produced and supported by state offices of rural health for Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington. This year's conference is titled "Weathering the Perfect Storm: Challenges & Changes". | |
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