South Coast Healthcare Organizations Attended
BANDON – The Oregon Office of Rural Health and the Oregon Rural Practice-based Research Network held a Southern Oregon Coast Listening Session on Friday, April 20, at the Bandon Community Center.
The sessions were designed to collect honest feedback and creative ideas in discussing the healthcare challenges that face rural regions and identify ways in which health care facilities and public health can be supported by OHSU’s rural-focused programs to improve access to and quality of care for rural community members.
The feedback will be used to guide OORH and ORPRN’s work going forward as they develop new and innovative ways to support rural health care in Oregon.
Attending the listening session in Bandon were representatives from Southern Coos Hospital & Health Center, including CEO Raymond Hino, CNO Cori Valet, and CIO Scott McEachern, along with representatives from Coast Community Health Center, Coquille Valley Hospital, and several other healthcare organizations from Coos and Curry counties.
Listening sessions were also held in other rural areas around the state.
From the listening sessions, OORH and ORPRN will publish a report to be shared with participants by mid-June and present their findings at the 41st Annual Oregon Rural Health Conference in Bend this October 2-4.
Facilitating and planning the Bandon session and other sessions around the state were Melinda Davis, PhD, MCR, ORPRN director; Robert Duehmig, director, OORH; Maggie McLain McDonnell, MPH, director of Education, ORPRN; and Sarah Anderson, director of Field Services, OORH.
Following the sessions, facilitators shared resources that were discussed in order to provide further references for participants, including such topics as Critical Access Hospital programming, rural health clinic programming, workforce recruitment and retention, quality improvement training, patient and family engagement, billing and coding webinars, workshops, community outreach, multiple technical assistance programs, and more.
To learn more about the OORH, visit: https://www.ohsu.edu/oregon-office-of-rural-health. A full list of ORPRN’s active projects is available at: https://www.ohsu.edu/oregon-rural-practice-based-research-network/active-projects
To stay informed, sign up for ORPRH enews here: https://www.ohsu.edu/oregon-rural-practice-based-research-network/contact-us.