For over 20 years, the Montana Office of Rural Health (MORH) has been conducting the Community Health Services Development Program (CHSD) and has worked with over 40 Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs) and communities throughout Montana.  The CHSD program was developed in 1987, by the University of Washington School of Medicine (UWSOM), and the MORH collaborated with the UWSOM to conduct the program in Montana.  The forerunner of the CHSD program was the UWSOM Rural Hospital Project (RHP).  This was a regionalized demonstration project designed to restructure the services provided by rural hospitals in the WAMI states (Washington, Alaska, Montana, Idaho - Wyoming became part of WAMI in 1996 to make it WWAMI).  The original purpose of the RHP was to demonstrate ways rural hospitals in the WAMI states could assess and modify their financial structure - and - the types, quantity, and quality of services provided in the community.  The RHP was a demonstration project funded by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and involved 6 hospitals in the WAMI states.

The CHSD program evolved as a follow-up of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation RHP.  CHSD was one of the first community-based outreach programs of the UWSOM.  The CHSD program was initiated in 1987 at approximately the same time the MORH was started at Montana State University.  CHSD engages communities in strengthening rural hospitals and other health services in the local area.  This is achieved through bringing the hospital and community together to assess the healthcare delivery system, address questions of utilization in the community, overall access to healthcare, perceptions of quality of care, and public health issues. 

Now, with new Federal Legislation for Hospitals having non-profit status, each hospital is required to conduct health assessments.  Therefore, the CHSD program of the MORH is an important and easily accessible asset to address this new requirement.   In 2011, funding for conducting the CHSD process for 11 CAHs was provided through the Montana Health and Research Foundation's FLEX grant and the Frontier Community Health Integration Project.  Communities selected to participate in 2011 are:

-          Baker - Fallon Medical Complex

-          Culbertson - Roosevelt Medical Center

-          Ennis - Madison Valley Hospital

-          Miles City - Holy Rosary Health Care

-          Plains - Clark Fork Valley Hospital

-          Terry - Prairie Community Health Center

-          Chester - Liberty Medical Center

-          Ekalaka - Dahl Memorial Healthcare

-          Forsyth - Rosebud Health Care Center

-          Philipsburg - Granite County Medical Center

-          Sheridan - Ruby Valley Hospital

Outcomes from the CHSD process include community engagement, community health goals, strengthened healthcare services, and community investment in the future of the health system.

Additional information about the CHSD program of the MORH may be obtained by contacting Natalie Claiborne, Assistant Director, at (406) 994-6001 or natalie.claiborne@montana.edu.

The first ORH/AHEC Annual Report is now available! The report summarizes our activities over the past year and is a great document showcasing the work we are doing around the state. Let us know if you would like a hard copy!  

Check it out on the ORH/AHEC website!  

The 2011 HOSA State Leadership Conference was held March 17-19 in Kalispell. 136 high school students and their local chapter advisors from around the state attended the conference. Students competed in over 30 competitive events ranging from Nursing Assisting and CPR/First Aid to Medical Photography and Biotechnology! The top three finishers in each event are now eligible to attend the National Conference which will be held June 22 - 25 in Anaheim, California.

During the State Conference, students were also given the opportunity to tour 13 different departments at Northwest Healthcare including A.L.E.R.T. Helicopter, Biomed, Radiology, Laboratory, Medical Library, OB Nursing, Pharmacy, Radiation Oncology, Rehab, Sports Medicine, The HealthCenter Surgery, Surgical Technician program, and Woundostomy. Students were able to learn from the volunteer staff members and get a first-hand look at these hospital departments and specialties!    

Flathead Valley Community College and Kalispell Regional Medical Center graciously hosted the event, and North Valley Hospital in Whitefish was also a big supporter! Many thanks go out to these organizations and all the individuals who helped make the conference a success!    

HOSA Chapters in Montana are located at Flathead High School, Columbia Falls High School, Sentinel High School, Helena High School, CMR High School, Great Falls High School, Augusta High School, Ronan High School, Bozeman High School, & the Billings Career Center. There are 252 HOSA members state-wide.   

For more information on HOSA please contact Bergen Morehouse, State HOSA Advisor, at 406.683.2790 or bergen@mtha.org

Since its inception in November 2007, the South Central Montana AHEC has had a focus on recruitment of healthcare professionals to Montana, in addition to efforts on many other workforce/pipeline activities.  With a decrease in grant funding, the need for self-sustainability and a desire to continue to provide low-cost recruitment services, a new referral-based recruitment program has been created and is called MT Connections.  The previous services are now being offered for an annual fee of $5000, for unlimited postings - a very budget-friendly amount when compared with a typical recruitment firm.  In addition to the ability to post on 3RNet and the guidance provided to ensure quality postings, members will also receive:

• Representation at local, regional and national career fairs and healthcare conferences
• A flash drive, containing a Recruitment & Retention Tool Kit (which includes forms, templates and step-by-step recruitment guidance)
• Free access to MGMA salary and RVU data
• Representation at post-secondary health, medical school & residency programs regarding current Montana job openings
• Promotion of positions on additional websites and in print ads

In the past year, 16 placements can be attributed to the AHEC referrals.  These successes consist of 5 Family Practitioners, 2 Internists, 2 Nurse Practitioners, 4 Physician Assistants, 1 Dentist and 3 RNs.

MT Connections is a referral-based recruitment program but the revenue generated will provide many other AHEC pipeline programs and services as well.  Some of these programs are: the Great Hospital Adventure, Curriculum-in-a-Box, REACH, MedStart, HOSA support, Osler's Evenings, rural rotations - many long-term solutions to the healthcare workforce shortage!

For more information, please feel free to contact Lisa Benzel at lisa@mtha.org or Jamie Groy at jamie@mtha.org  or by phone at 406-683-2790.

 South Central Montana AHEC has been busy with Allied Health Recruitment over the past couple of months.  We have attended 5 career and job fairs since January including: Great Falls Health Science Career Workshop in Great Falls, Stone Child College Career Fair in Box Elder, Montana Tech Career Fair in Butte, Salish Kootenai College Career Fair in Pablo, and Miles City Job Fair in Miles City. We are continuing to expand allied health recruitment in Montana through the use of 3Rnet and are always looking for new fairs to attend.

If you have any questions regarding 3RNet or need assistance recruiting for your facility, please contact Jamie Groy, 406.683.2790, jamie@mtha.org.