|
2011 GRHA Board of Directors
President
Nannette Turner
Immediate Past President
Greg Dent
President Elect
Sallie Barker
Vice President
Denise Kornegay
Treasurer
Sheila Freeman
Secretary
Deidre Howell
Board Members
Ann Addison
Carla Belcher
Laura Bland Gillman
Johnny Grant
Sue Nieman
Charles Owens
Chris Parker
Rhett Partin
Caroline Holley Womack
Matt Caseman |
|
NOTICE
To make hotel reservations at Callaway Gardens Lodge & Spa you will need to call this number: 706-489-3300 and ask for reservations. You will need to tell the reservation agent you are booking a room with the Georgia Rural Health Association Annual Conference and want the group rate. |
|
GRHA Welcomes New Members
Platinum Corporate Sponsor
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Georgia
Organizational
Memorial Hospital of Adel
The Wynn Group
R. T. Stanley Health Center, LLC
Individual
Sally vander Straeten
Gena Agnew
Cheryl Johnson
|
For those of you who want to stay up to date through social networks, please join the Georgia Rural Health Association Facebook page and follow us on Twitter!   By joining our social media sites, you have the ability to stay updated on the latest rural health information in Georgia. Please help us spread the word! Thank you for your support and feel free to contact us with any questions. |
|
MAG/GMGMA WORKSHOPS
The Medical Association of Georgia (MAG) in partnership with the Georgia Medical Group Management Association (GMGMA) will condut innovative CME-accredited workshops across the state in 2011.
|
| Notice | |
GRHA circulates state and national news as an information service only. Inclusion of information is not intended as an endorsement.
|
|
|
GEORGIA RURAL HEALTH ASSOCIATION
ANNUAL MEETING & CONFERENCE
GRHA- KEEPIN' IT RURAL: 30 YEARS & COUNTING
Call for Abstracts -
Students Poster Session
Speaker Sessions
Deadline Extended
Georgia Rural Health Association 2011 Awards of Excellence
Please visit our website for award descriptions and a Nomination Form. Completed nominations must be received by August 15, 2011.
Links are on our Homepage under Save the Date or
Call the GRHA home office- 478-552-3620 and request a form |
|
 | |
GRHA Past Presidents
Left to Right
Joe Lawley, PhD; Karen Minyard, PhD; Jan Labeause, Lamar Blount, J. Steven Barber, Rebecca Ryles, Paul Newell, MD; James Peoples |
|
|
HHS rolls out EHR adoption program for underserved areas
June 20, 2011 - 7:36am ET | By Janice Simmons
The Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) Office of Minority Health--working with Quest Diagnostics and its subsidiary MedPlus--rolled out a new initiative last week to help improve electronic health record (EHR) adoption among small healthcare practices serving medically underserved and minority populations. Quest and MedPlus--the first vendors to participate in the HHS initiative--are donating about 75 EHR licenses for Quest's cloud-based Care360 EHR software, which includes one-year subscription fees, and will help pull together the necessary information technology elements for the participating practices in the Houston area. --Read the full post at FierceEMR
Read more: HHS rolls out EHR adoption program for underserved areas - FierceHealthIT http://www.fiercehealthit.com/story/hhs-rolls-out-ehr-adoption-program-underserved-areas/2011-06-20#ixzz1PqieblQd |
|
Up to $500 Million in Affordable Care Act Funding Will Help Health Providers Improve Care Through Partnership for Patients Federal Contracting Opportunities
The US Department of Health and Human Services has announced that up to $500 million in Partnership for Patients funding will be available to help hospitals, healthcare provider organizations, and others improve care and stop millions of preventable injuries and complications related to healthcare acquired conditions and unnecessary readmissions. This funding, made available by the Affordable Care Act, will be awarded by the CMS Innovation Center.
"Since the Partnership for Patients was announced, we have had an overwhelming response from hospitals, doctors, employers, and other partners who want to be a part of this historic effort to improve patient safety," said CMS Administrator Donald M Berwick, MD. "We are now looking to contract with local and statewide entities that can foster and support hospitals' efforts to improve healthcare and reduce harm to patients."
The Partnership for Patients is a new public-private partnership that will help improve the quality, safety, and affordability of healthcare for all Americans. The Partnership's two goals are reducing harm in hospital settings by 40-percent and reducing hospital readmissions by 20-percent over a 3-year period. To achieve these goals, the Partnership is seeking to contract with large healthcare systems, associations, state organizations, or other interested parties to support hospitals in the hard work of redesigning care processes to reduce harm. "Hospital Engagement Contractors" will be asked to do the following:
- Design intensive programs to teach and support hospitals in making care safer;
- Conduct trainings for hospitals and care providers;
- Provide technical assistance for hospitals and care providers; and
- Establish and implement a system to track and monitor hospital progress in meeting quality improvement goals.
In addition to the Hospital Engagement Contractors, CMS will also be working with other contractors to develop and share ideas and practices that improve patient safety. These efforts include work with patients and families to understand their thoughts on how to best improve patient safety and transitions between different healthcare settings - such as when a patient is discharged from a hospital to a nursing home.
These contracts make available the first round of funding - which will ultimately total up to $500 million - that the Innovation Center has committed to this effort. Solicitations for proposals are available on the Federal Business Opportunities website at www.FBO.gov (solicitation number APP111513).
When the Partnership for Patients was announced, the Obama administration committed up to $1 billion in Affordable Care Act funding to help achieve its two goals; at the time of the announcement, up to $500 million was made available through the Community-based Care Transitions Program to ensure patients safely transition between settings of care. Today's announcement makes available the start of $500 million additional Innovation Center funds to help reduce healthcare acquired conditions and reduce unnecessary readmissions.
|
The Food and Drug Administration Unveils Graphic Cigarette Labels
For over 25 years, text-only warnings have appeared on cigaretee packs. Now the FDA has released 9 jarring images.
The new warnings, which dipict the negative health impact of cigarettes, are required to cover at least 50 percent of every pack of cigarettes sold in the U.S. by mid-2013.
View photos |
National Scleroderma Awareness Month
WHAT IS SCLERODERMA?
Scleroderma is a chronic, often progressive, autoimmune disease in which the immune system attacks its own body.
Scleroderma means "hard skin." It can cause a thickening and tightening of the skin. In some cases, it causes serious damage to internal organs including the lungs, heart, kidneys, esophagus and gastrointestinal tract. As scarring, or sclerosis, of these organs and organ systems progress, they work less effectively, and can lead to organ failure and death.
Some medications and treatments can help with certain symptoms, but there is no cure for scleroderma. The disease affects about 300,000 people across the U.S. In comparison, the same number of people are affected by multiple sclerosis.
Learn more about the disease. |
|
Archbold Offers Support for Lung Disease
Thomasville's Better Breathers Club, a new partnership between Archbold Health Services and The American Lung Association in Georgia, will provide support, information, education and socialization to people with lung disease.
The club will hold its first meeting on June 29, 2011 at 10:00 am in the Williams Auditorium at Archbold Memorial Hospital. Family members and caregivers are encouraged to attend. There is no charge to join or attend the meetings.
According to Rick Dondero, disease management coordinator for Archbold Health Services, club members will learn skills that will help manage their condition and improve their quality of life. Members will learn coping skills as well as exercise and breathing techniques.
Thomasville's Better Breathers Club will hold regular meetings on the last Wednesday of each month in the Williams Auditorium.
For more information about Thomasville's Better Breathers Club, please contact Rick Dondero or Kathy Collins at 229-228-5886. |
|
Take the Test, Take Control - Mon June 27 is National HIV Testing Day
National HIV Testing Day (NHTD) is an event organized by the National Association of People with AIDS (NAPWA) in partnership with other national and local entities across the country. The 17th annual NHTD takes place this year on Mon Jun 27 as part of an ongoing effort to combat the growing HIV epidemic by teaching those at risk the powerful reasons for learning one's HIV status. This initiative is unique in that the message "Take the Test, Take Control" comes directly from those already living with HIV.
As the HIV epidemic turns thirty, the CMS reminds the healthcare community that Medicare provides coverage for HIV screening for Medicare beneficiaries at increased risk for HIV infection based on the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommendations and subject to coverage and eligibility guidelines.
What Can You Do?
CMS urges Medicare providers to help the cause by educating seniors and other beneficiaries on the various preventive services covered by Medicare; for at-risk beneficiaries, use your office visits as an opportunity to inform your patients about the benefits of HIV screening. Medicare provides coverage for HIV screening as a Medicare Part B benefit; eligible beneficiaries may receive this service at no out-of-pocket cost (no coinsurance, copayment, or deductible). (Beneficiaries with any known prior diagnosis of HIV-related illness are not eligible for this screening test.) |
|
What's Up Doc? What You Need to Know About Med School
LIVE Webinar for Those Interested in Applying to a Georgia Medical School
July 21, 2011 2:00PM Info & Registration: http://healthtecdl.org/events/details/Whats-up-Doc.cfm
NRHA Quality and Clinical Conference
July 20-22, 2011Rapid City, S.D
Registration Information
Fifth Annual National Conference on Health Communications, Marketing, and Media
August 9 - 11, 2011
Center for Disease Control and Prevention
Atlanta, GA
Information
Georgia Rural Health Association Annual Conference
September 19-21,2011
Callaway Gardens, Pine Mountain, GA
ANNA FALL MEETING 2011
For Nephrology Nurses, Managers, and Advanced Practice Nurses
September 24-26, 2011
Hilton Atlant
Atlanta, GA
Register by August 12, 2011 to take advantage of reduced rates |
|
|
|
|
|
|
