This is the TASC Program's monthly newsletter with announcements, resources, and educational opportunities. |
|
Hello everyone,
I hope you all had a lovely month of May and are enjoying the final parts of Spring while planning some fun Summer activities!
We know how busy everyone was this past month with submitting the Non-Competing Continuations, state meetings and conferences, and everything in between. Thank you to everyone who was able to find some time to attend our different events this month. Be sure to check out the Technical Assistance and Services Center (TASC) Events page to catch up on any webinars you might have missed.
Once again, thank you for reading Rural Route. We also encourage you to continue utilizing the Flex Forum as a means for networking with your peers, a place for Q&A, and participation in meaningful discussions. If you have questions or need assistance regarding the Flex Forum, please reach out to me or TASC.
Best,
Andy Naslund
Program Coordinator
TASC
|
|
Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP) Updates |
|
Flex Program Update by Tori Leach, Flex Program Coordinator |
|
Dear Flex Colleagues,
I am very pleased to report that all Flex Programs submitted their Non-Competing Continuation (NCC) Progress Reports in on time! Thank you all for the time and effort you put in to preparing those documents. We are so appreciative of the work you have accomplished and plans for Year 3, especially around the new Flex Quality Improvement (QI) Project. We will be working with our partners at TASC, the Rural Quality Improvement Technical Assistance (RQITA), and the Flex Monitoring Team (FMT) to develop the Quality Innovation Labs as we start the next program year, and will provide more information soon.
There was an email announcement to Small Rural Hospital Improvement Project (SHIP) Coordinators on Friday, May 21st, 2021, detailing the new funding available through the American Rescue Plan (ARP). The fiscal year (FY) 2021 SHIP COVID-19 Testing and Mitigation initiative will provide one-time funding to support hospitals for testing education, establishment of alternate testing sites, test result processing, arranging for the processing of test results, and engaging in other activities within the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Community Mitigation Framework to address COVID-19 in rural communities.
RHCs that have met the requirements for the RHC COVID-19 Testing Program will receive a one-time allocation of up to $100,000 per clinic site automatically deposited in the bank account of the corresponding tax identification number (TIN) organization in June 2021. RHCs will not have to apply for payments for this program. Ineligible RHCs that are not current with reporting of testing data on rhccovid19reporting.com will have the opportunity to catch up for future program consideration, dependent on the availability of funds.
Many thanks,
Tori
CAH Regulatory Update
|
|
Flex Welcomes and Farewells |
In June, we will bid a fond farewell to Cassie Kennedy of Iowa, who will be joining a new position at the Iowa Department of Health. Thank you for all your hard work in Flex and SHIP, Cassie, and we wish you good luck in your new role!
Also, in June, Kris Juliar of the Montana State Office of Rural Health will be retiring. We wish you the happiest of retirements Kris and would like to thank you for all your years of hard work and dedication to rural health.
space
|
|
A CAH Success Story! Liberty County Medical Center (LCMC), Chester, Montana |
|
"Walk with Ease Breathe with Ease, No Vape About It" |
From August to September 2020, the Liberty County Medical Center (LCMC), a critical access hospital in Chester, Montana, coordinated efforts to promote physical activity and tobacco cessation initiatives.
The LCMC Wellness Team, Tobacco Prevention Specialist, Chamber of Commerce, and the Toole County Health Promotion Specialist coordinated to offer the Walk With Ease Self-Directed (WWE-SD) program simultaneously with tobacco prevention efforts, calling the program “Walk with Ease Breathe with Ease, No Vape About It.” The program was offered to the Liberty County Medical Center (LCMC) employees as well as community members.
The goal of the collaboration was to increase physical activity while providing education on tobacco cessation (specifically vaping). Multi-sector partnerships such as this are essential within small rural communities where medical and public health staff often have multiple positions. Combining various domains into a single event (i.e., tobacco use prevention, physical wellness, worksite wellness) can benefit participants and leadership alike.
Read more about this collaborative effort and dual initiatives, the program incentives, participation and results, and feedback here.
|
|
Technical Assistance and Services Center (TASC) Updates |
|
The 2021 Flex Program Virtual Reverse Site Visit (RSV)
As a reminder, the 2021 Flex Program Virtual Reverse Site Visit (RSV) will be July 20-22, 2021, as a virtual event. This Flex Program meeting is supported by FORHP and coordinated by TASC. The purpose of the Flex Virtual RSV is to highlight the latest information and issues in the Medicare Rural Hospital Flexibility (Flex) Program and offer states an opportunity to share experiences, lessons learned and successes in a collaborative learning environment.
Please keep these dates held on your calendar and be on the lookout for more information. Online registration for the Flex Program RSV will open next week. There are no registration fees required with this event. The intended audience for the Flex Program RSV is State Office Directors, Flex Coordinators/other key Flex personnel (four per state), the Flex Monitoring Team (FMT), the Rural Quality Improvement Technical Assistance (RQITA), the TASC Advisory Committee, and staff of FORHP.
The theme for this year's RSV is Rural Resilience for Healthier Communities. There will be a Resiliency Workshop available to Flex Coordinators the week prior to the Reverse Site Visit to coincide with the RSV. TASC will be announcing more information regarding this workshop soon and the sign-up will be separate from the RSV registration.
|
|
New from Rural Health Innovations! The Rural Minnesota Path to Value Podcast Series |
|
Podcasts for Hospital Staff and Mid-Level Leaders! |
Rural Health Innovations recently released the Rural Minnesota Path to Value Podcast Series education podcasts for both critical access hospital staff and mid-level leaders on the 'why' and 'how' of value-based care and population health.
This series includes three mini-podcasts intended for hospital staff on the basics of population health and social determinants of health that apply to those who work in a hospital, as well as five 30-minute podcasts for mid-level leaders to learn best practices as they address social determinants of health and shift towards population health.
Listen to the podcasts here!
|
|
Hosted by RQITA -- Thursday, June 10, 2021 from 2:00 p.m. - 3:30 p.m. Central Time
VKG hosted by TASC -- Tuesday, June 15, 2021 from 2:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. Central Time
Hosted by TASC -- Wednesday, June 16, 2021 from 2:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. Central Time
|
|
|
Updated Resources
Please send your MBQIP questions to tasc@ruralcenter.org. TASC will ensure your question reaches the appropriate person.
|
|
Webinars Recordings and Resources |
|
Webinar Playbacks
New and Updated Resources
Many more resources can be found on the TASC resource library by searching for key words in the search field.
|
|
Highlighted Resource: New from Rural Health Information Hub! The Rural Maternal Toolkit |
|
Rural and tribal women experience poorer maternal health, including higher pregnancy-related mortality. The Rural Health Information Hub (RHIhub), the University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center, and the NORC Walsh Center for Rural Health Analysis created the Rural Maternal Toolkit Health to help rural organizations implement programs to improve maternal health outcomes in their communities.
|
|
For any questions, comments, or concerns, please contact us.
We are happy to help!
|
|
This project is/was supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) under grant number UB1RH24206, Information Services to Rural Hospital Flexibility Program Grantees, $1,009,120 (0% financed with nongovernmental sources). This information or content and conclusions are those of the author and should not be construed as the official position or policy of, nor should any endorsements be inferred by HRSA, HHS, or the U.S. Government. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
