In addition to providing advice for those with potential interest in rural healthcare executive positions, four Critical Access Hospitals leaders – all under age 40 – share stories of innovation and impact on their organizations and communities.
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Benjamin Anderson, CEO of a 25-bed CAH in Kansas, discloses his relational style of healthcare leadership and his success attracting committed medical providers and engaging the area’s growing refugee population.
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Melissa Kelly, CEO and CFO of a 21-bed CAH in Nebraska, discusses adding child care and restoring retail pharmacy to her community and encourages others to take advantage of rural healthcare resources.
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Stephanie Orr, the CNO of an 18-bed CAH in Idaho, shares what it’s like to become a leader much sooner than planned and emphasizes the importance of working the front lines.
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Adam Willmann, CEO of a 25-bed CAH in Texas, talks about the importance of bringing “change” as an innovation to the hospital of his birth.
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Public agencies and private non-profit groups have mutual interests in improving the health of rural Americans. The Federal Office of Rural Health Policy and philanthropy organizations worked together to create a unique funding opportunity, the Rural Health Care Coordination Network Partnership Program. Two health care organizations and their philanthropy partners share how coordinated efforts benefit patients with diabetes, congestive heart failure and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
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Resistant bacteria, or “superbugs,” are a cause of major medical illness and death. Government and accreditation agencies, as well as infectious disease experts, believe hospital antibiotic stewardship programs are the answer to blunting the impact and development of these germs. Despite limited resources, rural and Critical Access Hospitals are activating their stewardship programs.
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Due to barriers like cost and staffing, many rural healthcare facilities’ information systems are susceptible to malware attacks such as ransomware. South Peninsula Hospital, a Critical Access Hospital in Homer, Alaska, uses an IT staff of six to monitor threats and train coworkers on how to safeguard their hospital’s information.
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First conceptualized in the 1970s, but not widely adopted in rural communities, freestanding emergency departments (FSEDs) have been getting another look as a sustainable rural option. This article discusses hospital-based versus independent FSEDs, the model’s financial viability, and highlights two FSEDs meeting their communities’ healthcare needs in Arizona and Illinois.
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Since its start, the Illinois Critical Access Hospital Network has designed services to meet the needs of rural hospitals across the state. Through leveraging FORHP funds and their partnership with the Illinois Department of Public Health, ICAHN has helped 54 hospitals transition from competition to collaboration.
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