Last December, the decision was made that a puppy was needed in our home. We had been talking about it for some time and when an opportunity arose, we jumped on the chance. I like to think that Piper picked us. When we first met her she was calm, always ready to play, but stopped when we stopped, and come on, who is going to say no to that face?! Fast forward three months and she can sit, shake, lie down, roll over, go on walks like a champ, and is very food motivated.

Now, at this point you are wondering what does this have to do with planning a meeting, or building an agenda, or convening a planning committee? It has everything to do with it! It takes preparation, commitment, patience, learning, and above all, trust.

We just finished our first planning call for Region A and I had an epiphany halfway through the call. Everyone was listening to each other carefully, they were being considerate, they were helping each other to build topic ideas, they were learning from past meetings and taking those experiences into consideration, and lastly, they were all on the same page of wanting to make the meeting meaningful for the whole region. My “aha!” moment came when I was on the call and I heard Piper barking at the back door to go outside. I thought to myself, wow, we did a great job with her! That is exactly how I feel when all the regions come together to plan the agendas and events for the regional meetings.

I’m not saying that everything is always sunshine and roses. We all have our own states, with our own issues, and our own experiences. I don’t think Piper should be chewing on her bone on the couch, but my fiancé William says otherwise. So, we compromised, and Piper is no longer allowed to have her bone on the couch! That funny joke aside, it really does mean so much to me to see the collaboration, the genuine communication, and the common goal that arises out of planning these meetings.

Matthew Strycker

NOSORH Program Manager

What I'm working on right now: Today I am working on a mental health conference that is March 20th, an opioid conference on June 27th, and a new competitive SLRP grant. 

Who inspires you? My friends and family, including my NOSORH family.

Favorite quote: "The way you do one thing, is how you do everything."

Favorite thing about working at a SORH: Every day is different in our SORH. Kind of like a box of candy. I never know what the flavor of the day will be.

3 great things about rural health in my state: T he people with whom I work, the communities I am able to serve, and the mission I can promote to increase access in rural. 

If I weren't doing this, I would be... outside as much as possible! Probably walking, gardening and playing with my dogs.

Last place I traveled to : Carefree, Arizona

People would be surprised if they knew: I used to have a Harley and still have my motorcycle license.

Tammy Norville , formerly of the North Carolina Office of Rural Health, began work as NOSORH’s Technical Assistance Director on March 12 ^th. Tammy will coordinate the development of Institutes, toolkits and other services to support SORH and staff. She will also help facilitate the RHC, Flex and Development Committees. 

“Tammy has such a diverse background beyond her work to support a wide breadth of needs for North Carolina’s safety net providers," said Teryl Eisinger, NOSORH Executive Director. "Her understanding of how to engage with rural communities is deeply rooted in her experience working with Jim Bernstein.”  Jim's work has been an inspiration to NOSORH’s early work on mentoring and we honor him every year through a NOSORH award. We’re proud to have Tammy bring that love for rural to our work.”

Tammy can be reached at tammyn@nosorh.org.

Zora Radosevich brings a career-long passion for rural health and the viability of rural communities to her new role as Director of the Minnesota Office of Rural Health & Primary Care. Zora comes from the Disability Services Division of the Minnesota Department of Human Services, where she served as the Community Services Access Manager, administering the disability waiver programs and working extensively with stakeholders around the state to plan for and implement effective home and community-based services for Minnesotans with disabilities. She has also served as an assistant director of the property tax division at the Department of Revenue, and has led broad public-private partnerships focused on improving education, healthcare and social services for children. She was a founder and executive director of a nonprofit organization to empower girls around the world to help shape global healthcare and education policies. She also worked for a number of years in the Minnesota Senate, focusing on tax and financing issues impacting rural communities. Zora has a Master’s in Public Administration from Harvard, and has served as an adjunct faculty member at the University of Minnesota, focusing on public policy, leadership, and advocacy.

Andrea Gibson recently j oined the South Carolina Office of Rural Health. She will serve as program manager and provide support for the activities of the Center for Practice Transformation and all clinic focused services. She will also work closely with grant awarding agencies and organizations. Andrea is from Columbia, South Carolina, and received her B.S in Biology from Claflin University. She earned her Master of Public Health degree along with a Certificate of Graduate Study in Health Communication from the University of South Carolina. She has worked on many federally funded grants to implement health promotion programs in rural South Carolina and has an extensive background in conducting research in community health and cancer health disparities for the University of South Carolina.

Andrea Heyward joins the South Carolina Office of Rural Health as a Quality Improvement Coach for the Center for Practice Transformation. She  has worked for over a decade with various youth-serving organizations to implement evidence-based programs focused on improving the health outcomes of adolescents and young adults. She received a Master of Health Science in Health Education and Health Communication from The Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health and a Bachelor of Arts in Experimental Psychology from the University of South Carolina. She is also a Master Certified Health Education Specialist. Growing up in a rural community, Andrea has a passion for working to improve the overall health and economic outcomes of rural communities across the state. 

Andy Klitzke is the new Administrator at the South Dakota Office of Rural Health.

Dennis Halfhill has left the Florida Office of Rural Health.

Toney Bailey recently left his position as Director of the Arkansas Office of Rural Health and Primary Care.

Maria Radtke recently retired from the Wisconsin Office of Rural Health. 

Owen Quinonez's last day with the Utah Office of Primary Care and Rural Health was February 26th to take on a position at the Florida Department of Health. "Owen was a great team player and we will always remember his passion for improving rural health in Utah," said Matt McCullough, Director.

2019 Essential Community Provider Listing

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has established a designation for health service providers called Essential Community Provider (ECP).There are requirements for Qualified Health Plans to assure that a bare minimum of these key service providers are part of their networks.

Click here for an Excel spreadsheet which includes all the ECPs recognized by CMS for the 2019 Program Year. The listing provides a record for each ECP site . It includes location and staffing for each site as well as affiliated organizational information for each site. Filters are established on key data fields permitting users to separate out listings by state, site location and ECP type.You can use the spreadsheet to view those ECPs in your state and identify any rural providers that might be omitted. Omitted providers can petition CMS to be added to the listing.

Click here for a detailed overview describing the use of the spreadsheet .