Rural Route
 
October, 2018
Hello everyone,

Happy Halloween! The  Technical Assistance and Services Center (TASC) team has had a busy start to the fall, as I'm sure you have as well. We enjoyed seeing many of you at the National Rural Health Association (NRHA) Critical Access Hospital (CAH) Conference, the National Organization of State Offices of Rural Health (NOSORH) Annual Meeting and at various other activities around the country! 

Enjoy this month's edition where we have three articles that we'd like to highlight:
We encourage you to connect peer to peer on the Flex Program Forum. Do you have a question, idea, success or challenge t o share with your Flex Program peers?  Don't miss the ongoing discussions on the  Flex Program Forum ! Please note that you will need to login to view posts - contact TASC for details.

Thanks for reading  Rural Route ! If you have any comments on the new format or suggestions for ways we can improve  Rural Route , please let us know by completing this brief survey.

Take care,

Shannon Norman 
TASC Team
In this Issue
Newsflash
TASC Updates
MBQIP Updates
Webinars & Events
Resources
Quick Links

TASC Home

Events

Resource Library

Staff

State Flex Profiles

FMT

NOSORH

Grants.gov

RHIhub

Rural Health Value

CMS
FORHP Updates
 
Flex Program Update

Federal Flex updates for October include: Performance Improvement and Measurement System (PIMS) reporting call for feedback, change to Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) guidance on federal funding acknowledgements, US Government Accountability Office report on rural hospital closures and an overview of National Rural Health Day events. 

CAH Regulatory Update

Critical access hospital (CAH) Regulatory updates for October include: Proposed Regulatory Provisions to Promote Program Efficiency, Transparency and Burden Reduction.
Continue reading CAH Regulatory Updates.
Newsflash

CAH Recognition Nomination Period - Now Open
Topic: Innovative Telehealth Initiatives
The Critical Access Hospital (CAH ) Recognition certificate was established by the National Rural Health Resource Center and the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP ) to recognize the excellent work in CAHs throughout the country. The recognition, nominated by the state Flex Programs, promotes excellence and innovation and honors the achievements and results of CAHs through Flex-supported activities and impact. This round of CAH Recognition will recognize innovative telehealth initiatives  that are improving population health. 

Telehealth-supported programs offer new methods for improving health care access and quality by extending the reach of health care services, improving the ability of rural providers to address a broader range of medical conditions, and facilitating collaboration between professionals with limited access to their colleagues. If your state Flex Program has worked with a CAH that has taken innovative steps to actively integrate telehealth initiatives that have had an impact on population health, we invite you to participate in this recognition process.

Vulnerable Rural Hospitals TA Opportunity - Apply Now
The newly created Center for Optimizing Rural Health will provide technical assistance (TA) to vulnerable rural hospitals with the goal of understanding economic challenges, community health needs and resources, and finding ways hospitals and communities can keep needed care locally. Hospital a pplication is required and is open from October 30 - November 30. In each application cycle, five hospitals will be selected for on-site TA and twenty-five hospitals will be selected for remotely facilitated TA. View the slides and webinar recording for more information which will be available at this site soon. 

Transition to Value Learning Collaborative
TASC partnered with the National Rural Accountable Care Consortium (NRACO) to facilitate a web-based learning collaborative for Flex Program personnel to gain knowledge and understanding about the ways they can support CAHs as they transition to value-based payment and population health. View the webinar recordings and related resources in sequential order below. 
TASC Updates

State Flex Profile Updates
Thank you to those of you have submitted your State Flex Profile updates. If you have not done so already, please submit your State Flex Profile update here as soon as possible. As a reminder, each state is required to submit an update and the extended deadline has passed. 

The FORHP Flex Program Workshop was a success!

TASC hosted fourteen people in Duluth, Minnesota on October 23-25 for the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP) Flex Program Workshop. Eleven states were represented, as well as members of the following organizations: FORHP, Flex Monitoring Team (FMT), Stratis Health, Eide Bailly, Ely-Bloomenson Community Hospital in Ely, Minnesota and Lake View Hospital in Two Harbors, Minnesota. Thank you to everyone who attended! The next Workshop will be held in April 2019. 

Pictured:  (Standing)  Shannon Norman, Jayda Lee, Caleb Siem, Sherry Buschjost, Diane Garland, Terry Hill, Tracy Zayac, Sherry Johnson, Nicole Clement, Jennifer Edwards, Shondia Evans, Robert Shaw, Trenton Engledow.  (Sitting)  Corie Kaiser, Nick Galvez, Clarissa Noble, Victoria Leach, Mariah Quick.

Flex Welcome and Farewell

Welcome:
  • Stephanie Moore, West Virginia State Office Director
Please keep your Flex staff contact information current by completing the  State Flex Program Contact Information Form  whenever there are staffing changes in your office. 
MBQIP Updates

Updated Resources
Please send your MBQIP questions to the TASC email address . TASC will ensure your question reaches the appropriate person.
Webinars, Recordings & Events

Save the Dates

November 14, 2018  l  2:00 PM Central Time

Flex Virtual Knowledge Group (VKG)
December 3, 2018  l  2:00 PM Central Time

Webinar Playbacks

Minnesota Integrative Behavioral Health (IBH) Program:
SHIP:
New and Updated Resources 

A full list of resources is available in the  TASC resource library .
Behavioral and Mental Health
Substance Use 
Many more resources can be found on the TASC website  by searching for key words in the search field. 
Rural Health Leadership Radio  was launched a year ago to support rural health leaders to share stories and information about what is working and what is not. Check out their latest podcasts now!

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