Featured News

Dr. Richard Terry receives Rural Health Service Award

Dr.  Richard Terry currently serves as the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs at the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine (LECOM at Elmira) and Chief Academic Officer at Lake Erie Consortium for Osteopathic Medicine Training (LECOMT).   This award recognizes Dr. Terry’s long and distinguished commitment to medical education, highlighted by his recent tireless efforts to expand LECOM programs to fill a critical need for physicians for underserved rural populations in the Southern Tier of New York.  Dr. Terry previously served as the Designated Institutional Official at Arnot Ogden Medical Center in Elmira, which hosts nine ACGME accredited programs and supports 126 residents and fellows.  Previously, he served as the Assistant Dean of Regional Clinical Education at LECOM where he built...

Dr. Robert Dweck receives Rural Health Practitioner Award

Dr. Robert Dweck has been a dedicated family practitioner for over 30 years.  He came to this rural area through the National Health Service Program to help pay off his student loan. He soon realized that this was not only a community where he could stay and raise a family, but most importantly, one that really needed him. Dr. Dweck opened his own practice in Millerton in 1987and, in 1990, joined two other practitioners to form the Foothills Family Health Center, which then became the Dutchess Medical Group. This practice was unique in the area, accepting Medicaid and offering a sliding fee schedule for patients who lacked insurance coverage. In 2001, he worked with Hudson River Health Care (HRHCare) to transition the practice into HRHCare’s network of Federally Qualified Health Centers (F...

Genesee-Orleans-Wyoming Opioid Task Force wins Outstanding Rural Health Program Award

NYSARH is pleased to recognize the Genesee-Orleans-Wyoming Opioid Task Force as the Outstanding Rural Health Program of the Year.  The nomination, submitted by Julie Gutowski, included information about an emergency department screening process used at local hospitals that helps to identify people using opioids that then connects patients with Peer Advocate or Recovery Coach in addition to a referral for treatment.  The Task Force operates a tri-county crisis line.  Their combined efforts have resulted in a measurable decrease in drug overdose visits to local hospitals as well as opioid related deaths between 2017 and 2018. The goal of the Genesee-Orleans-Wyoming Opioid Task Force is to address the growing opioid crisis in the tri-county area.  Through active collaboration and engagement, ...

NYSARH Announces New Administrative Team

The New York State Association for Rural Health (NYSARH) announces a new Administrative contract with Northern Area Health Education Center (NAHEC) effective July 2019. Karin Blackburn, NAHEC Center Director, will lead the NYSARH team as Director of Administrative Services.  She will be assisted by Katie Rafferty, Accounting Manager, and Kathy Hughes, Project Associate. Sara Wall Bollinger will continue as Director for Strategic Development. The Administrative Team will support the Board of Directors and the work of NYSARH committees.  They will produce communications, manage member engagement and implement the annual Rural Health Conference.  

Measurement Project Update: Nine Pilot Projects Chosen for Evaluation

Emma Nalin, MPH, MS Project Coordinator, Social Determinants of Health, Rural Health Network of South Central New York With funding from the NYS Health Foundation and Care Compass Network (CCN), Rural Health Network of SCNY is conducting a two-year project (2019-2020) to improve measurement of Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) among rural community-based organizations (CBOs).  As one of multiple activities in the project, consulting firm Germane Solutions evaluated SDOH measurement design for nine pilot projects. The resulting recommendations and return-on-investment tools will directly benefit pilot organizations in communicating the value of their SDOH interventions. The pilots target an array of health conditions with specific SDOH interventions, from addressing trauma in womenwith s...

Community Based Organization Planning Grant Underway for Upstate New York

The New York State Department of Health Community Based Organization (CBO) Planning Grant for Rest of State is finally underway and upstate CBOs are organizing to be a stronger voice in the next stages of the New York State DSRIP Program. Through the grant, the newly formed Upstate Community Based Organization (CBO) Consortium is assessing the needs of CBO members and working as a collective to prepare nonprofit organizations that address critical health and human services to be valued partners in an integrated healthcare delivery system. Healthy Community Alliance, Inc., a rural health network and the project’s lead agency, has been conducting thought leader forums with members and stakeholders across the state to help shape the Consortium’s short term goals and longer term strategies tha...

Measurement Project to Strengthen Rural CBOs’ Case for Participation In Value-Based Payment.

Healthcare’s traditional payment structures are rapidly shifting from fee-for-service models, in which providers are paid for delivering separate episodes of care, to value-based payment (VBP) models, in which providers are incentivized to move the needle on key health outcomes for their patients. With this new expectation comes increased attention to addressing patients’ non-medical needs such as food, transportation, financial stability, and housing. These health-related social needs, also referred to as Social Determinants of Health, broadly impact the wellbeing of individuals and communities. In this emerging payment environment, community- based organizations (CBOs) addressing social determinants have new opportunities to access healthcare dollars – if they can demonstrate the financi...

Rural Networks Making a Difference in the Opioid Epidemic

We didn’t want to miss sharing this webinar, recorded on National Rural Health Day, which features Karen Madden of the New York State Office of Rural Health, Rebecca Evansky, AHI, and Charlotte Crawford, Lake Plains Community Care Network. The recording showcases how small rural networks are innovating and collaborating with their communities to address the opioid crisis. Hit play to watch it below or click here for direct access.

NYSARH Research Project: Impact of NYS Funding

Casey Edwards conducted an important research project for NYSARH designed to inform and educate decision-makers regarding NYS funding to public health programs which have a direct and significant impact on: Health of people in rural communities Economic health of those communities Social determinants of health Edwards focus during her research was tri-fold–1.) identify and understand the purpose of key New York State health-related funding streams within selected rural communities, 2.) understand and identify the discrete categories of direct, indirect, and induced economic impact of outside funding by looking at selected health and social entities, and 3.) identify and discuss the economic impact of cuts in funding on rural infrastructure and communities, through the use of IMPLAN w...

A Rural Approach to the Opioid Crisis

The Rural Health Network of South Central New York was one of three agencies in the state awarded AmeriCorps funding to combat opioid misuse, and the only one focusing on rural communities. They have a creative and complex outreach and education program using Rural Health Service Corps members placed at community organizations in five primary counties and seven secondary counties. The team has been trained using the evidence-based Screening, Brief Intervention and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) curriculum approved by SAMSHA and HRSA.  Rural Health Service Corps members combat the opioid/heroin epidemic through prevention, treatment navigation, and recovery support in alignment with the NYS Heroin Task Force report. This program has already provided educational presentations to hundreds of s...