Targeted Technical Assistance for Rural Hospitals Program

912.478.2581
ttap@georgiasouthern.edu

The Targeted Technical Assistance for Rural Hospitals Program (TTAP) offers 2 years of comprehensive technical assistance to help rural hospitals meet financial and operational challenges and maintain essential health services for the communities they serve.

Selected hospitals receive support in prioritizing and implementing short-term, mid-range, and long-term strategies for positioning their organizations for financial sustainability through a process that includes:

• Comprehensive financial and operational assessments
• Financial sustainability planning
• Consultant matching
• Strategy implementation
• Monitoring
• Evaluation

Based on prioritized needs, participants may receive tailored one-on-one technical assistance in one or more of the following areas:

• Evidence-based strategy and business development
• Service line evaluation and reorganization
• Revenue cycle optimization
• Cost reporting
• Clinical and operational quality improvement
• Telehealth
• Rural Health Clinic performance optimization
• Marketing, community engagement, and outreach
• Workforce engagement and retention
• Coaching and leadership development
• Financial and operational management education and training

Eligible rural hospitals include short-term, non-federal general facilities located outside Metropolitan Core-Based Statistical Areas (CBSAs) or located within metropolitan areas in locations with Rural-Urban Commuting Area (RUCA) codes of 4 or greater, or facilities in any location participating in Medicare as Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs). Hospitals operated by Tribes and Tribal organizations under the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (Public Law 93-638, as amended) may also receive technical assistance.

Applicants must be committed to fully engaging in TTAP programming and must not be a current participant in the Delta Region Community Health Systems Development Program, the Rural Healthcare Provider Transition Project (RHPTP), or any other technical assistance program that is duplicative in services.

Participants receive 2 years of targeted technical assistance at no cost with an additional year of follow-up activities. A cohort of 4-6 hospitals will be selected to participate each year.

Participating hospitals receive support to:

• Optimize operational efficiencies
• Improve financial performance
• Improve clinical performance
• Develop sustainable, evidence-based solutions for maintaining essential health services
• Engage with healthcare management consultants and subject matter experts at no cost to the organization
• Enhance stakeholder (community, provider, and employee) engagement
• Establish community-centered partnerships for organizational and community viability

A link to the online application form is available on the program website.

The application should take approximately 10-15 minutes to complete.

An annual application deadline is announced for each new project year. The deadline for the 2026–2027 project year is September 30, 2026. Once the application deadline has passed, organizations may begin applying for participation in the next project year. Applicants who are not selected may be considered for future cohorts.