While the Covid-19 pandemic has put the spotlight on the discrepancy between rural and urban health, the organizers of National Rural Health Day on November 17, 2022, are optimistic about what will happen in rural health. I hope to shed light on all good things.
Established in 2007, the day is a way to highlight what local health workers bring to their communities. The day is organized by the National Rural Health Office (NOSORH) and rural health offices nationwide.
The day was made possible thanks to the poster, said Karen Madden, acting director of the New York Department of Health’s Center for Health Care Policy and Resource Development.
“I attended the national organization of the Washington, D.C., local health department, took time to meet with some of our partner organizations, and saw posters for National Public Health Week,” Madden said. “I saw the poster and said, ‘You know, we [rural healthcare] It takes less than a day.
Later, during lunch with colleagues, she mentioned the idea of a National Day to celebrate rural health. Initially, she thought everyone would dismiss the idea. To her surprise, everyone attended and the next year was the first event.
“Instantly, every state jumped on the idea,” she said. “It gave people — state and community providers — a day to celebrate what they do.”
And it’s also a time of increasing challenges facing rural health, Madden said.
“One of the challenges facing rural health today is the workforce,” she said. “This is a health care-wide problem, but in rural areas the situation is even worse, as these health care facilities cannot compete with those in big cities on salaries.”
And she said rural health care is difficult because the margins to operate are so thin. She said it was difficult to make ends meet because of this.
People seeking medical care in rural areas tend to be older, poorer and sicker, she said.
“There may be fewer people, but they have more needs,” she said. “Often, they are hesitant to get the service[as a way to save money]so when they come in, it’s very bad.”
That’s what makes National Rural Health Day so special, she said.
“Rural healthcare is tough. It’s a constant challenge,” she said. “But this… this is fun. It’s a way to show off the innovation and collaboration that happens in rural healthcare.”
This year’s event will once again feature the presentation of community stars. Community Stars is an award program that honors individuals and groups whose rural health initiatives and activities stand out.
On November 17th, NOSORH will announce “Carpool Collaboration: Conversations with Mission-Minded Rural Stakeholders.” It features a panel of guests sharing what they are doing with others to improve local healthcare.
Panelists from the fields of agriculture, broadband, public health, philanthropy, and rural and community clinics will discuss how health care providers and rural communities can work together to help the more than 60 million people living in rural America To do.
So far, the National Rural Health Day has helped raise the profile of rural health, organizers said. In 2021, the hashtag #PowerofRural took him over 14 million impressions during his NRHD week, with an average tweet per hour surpassing his 60. #RuralHealthChat on digital equity in rural health has over 2 million impressions on Twitter.
NRHD is a day when local rural healthcare providers and rural health facilities alike can ring the bell. NOSORH will provide a digital toolkit for local health stakeholders to promote their role in the celebration. Last year, the toolkit was downloaded over his 5,000 times.
But more than anything else, Madden said, it’s important to bring people together this year. She hopes this year’s Rural Health Day will help rural healthcare providers and other stakeholders come together and act as a team to advance rural healthcare.
“We want to bring everyone together and talk in one place,” she said. “Everyone needs to talk to each other if they want to be successful.”
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