Rural Project Examples Addressing Networking and collaboration

Updated/reviewed November 2025

Need: Improved health outcomes for Monadnock Region, a rural area of New Hampshire.
Intervention: A wide-scale effort across multiple sectors is aiming to improve health outcomes throughout the region.
Results: Community health trends have been tracked over time, and progress on goals such as increasing the number of residents with healthcare coverage, opportunities for physical activity, access to healthy foods, and smoking cessation has been made.

Updated/reviewed November 2025

Need: Primary care physicians in the rural areas of Wisconsin.
Intervention: A GME collaborative and technical assistance center that provides leadership, GME expertise, and support for expanding rural graduate medical education in Wisconsin.
Results: The collaborative expanded rural graduate medical education opportunities which now include over 30 rural-focused residency programs. There are several GME opportunities in specialties ranging from family medicine to surgery, obstetrics/gynecology, psychiatry, internal medicine and more.

Updated/reviewed October 2025

Need: To expand public health and human services to adults living in rural West Central Missouri.
Intervention: HCC Network organized Project Connect events, daylong resource fairs that offer free public health and human services to low-income adults, and now serves as a resource for other organizations who would like to host a Project Connect event in their area.
Results: In 2024, local Project Connect events welcomed 100 families and offered numerous services and resource connections.

Updated/reviewed September 2025

Need: To provide accessible and affordable services to address the challenges associated with aging, serious illness, and grief across rural western Colorado.
Intervention: A nonprofit, community-sustained healthcare model was created to provide the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE), dementia support, hospice care and palliative care, as well as grief support services for individuals of all ages.
Results: Since 1993, HopeWest has grown to serve more than 3,000 patients and families annually across five counties in western Colorado.

Updated/reviewed July 2025

Need: To address the specific health needs of north-central Oregon and south-central Washington.
Intervention: The Collective Impact Health Specialist identifies community needs, convenes community partners to design initiatives that address those needs, and secures funding for health-related initiatives.
Results: Thanks to the CIHS, the Columbia Gorge region has received $35.4 million since 2014.

Updated/reviewed April 2025

Need: Multiple organizations in rural east central Illinois needed a more efficient, centralized system for referring patients experiencing a behavioral health crisis to appropriate treatment services.
Intervention: The Regional Behavioral Health Network was established with a 24-hour toll-free crisis line, providing immediate access to trained crisis clinicians.
Results: Improved access to high quality behavioral healthcare for patients in rural east central Illinois.

Updated/reviewed August 2024

Need: To enhance emergency preparedness in rural areas by providing access to training, exercises, and crucial information.
Intervention: SPARC, a coalition of 197 organizations in southern Illinois, focuses on emergency preparedness.
Results: SPARC has facilitated numerous training sessions, exercises, and community events, enhancing regional preparedness and resilience.

Updated/reviewed June 2024

Need: To address the developmental, behavioral, and social/emotional needs of rural children ages 0-22 in northwest Illinois.
Intervention: Local partners teamed up to create a centralized service facility for children and families facing developmental, behavioral, and social/emotional issues. Florissa provides evaluations, diagnosis, and treatment to local children using a multidisciplinary, evidence-based approach.
Results: In 2023, Florissa provided a direct clinical service to over 337 children, in addition to many trainings and supportive programs. It also is co-located with the KSB Hospital pediatric department, a certified pediatric patient-centered medical home (PCMH).

Updated/reviewed December 2023

Need: To ensure the quality and sustainability of rural West Central Missouri's health services through the use of technology.
Intervention: The Health Care Coalition of Lafayette County convened a Health Information Technology (HIT) workgroup to establish electronic medical and prescription records, telemedicine capabilities, and training for Lafayette County and surrounding areas.
Results: The workgroup fully equipped a local emergency department with HIT, launched electronic prescriptions for nearly a dozen Lafayette County providers, and identified acute needs hindering the adoption of electronic health records.

Updated/reviewed November 2023

Need: Mental health assessment and referral to resources for men in rural Michigan who struggle with depression and suicidal thoughts.
Intervention: The Healthy Men Michigan campaign was a research study testing online screening for depression, including irritability and anger, and suicide risk in working-aged men. The Healthy Men Michigan campaign website also provided referrals to local and national resources specific to men's mental health and suicide prevention.
Results: More than 5,000 individuals completed anonymous online screenings and 550 men enrolled in the study. Healthy Men Michigan secured partnerships with over 225 individual and organizational partners, including healthcare facilities, small businesses, and recreational groups across the state. Together, their efforts have helped to promote screenings, reduce stigma, and encourage help-seeking behavior to prevent suicide.

Rural Project Examples: Networking and collaboration