Introduction to Rural Health Works

Rural Health Works (RHW) is funded through the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP).   RHW began in 1998 as an initiative to expand public awareness of the importance of the economic impact of the health care sector and to stress health care’s critical role in rural development.   RHW has provided information to support local decision-makers in rural communities to become proactive and intricately involved in planning and supporting their local health systems.   The ultimate objective has been to maintain local health care services, including critical access hospitals, to result in healthier rural communities and economies.

New Directions for the National Center for Rural Health Works

From 1999-2004 RHW was primarily involved with training state level professionals in the model to measure the economic impact of health services on a local economy.   In addition, information was also provided on the community health engagement model and health service profitability studies to enhance the provision of health services in rural areas.   The primary mode of delivery was conducting state train-the-trainer workshops.   Forty-four states have been trained in Rural Health Works; over thirty states have already started utilizing the RHW tools to save their rural health care.

Since workshops were completed in most states, the focus of RHW changed in 2004.   The directional change was from providing state train-the-trainer workshops to development of additional economic impact tools.   Rural Health Works has become the National Center for Rural Health Works to continue to provide technical assistance to those previously trained and to continue to publish and present health economic impact material to traditional health audiences and non-traditional rural development audiences.

What is the National Center for Rural Health Works?

The purpose of the National Center for Rural Health Works is to provide a process by which community residents can evaluate their health system.   The process leads to increased use and expansion of health services and ensures the existence of health services.   The center engages community residents in local health care decision-making by showing them the importance of the health care sector to their local economy.   The hard facts are illustrated with locally specific numbers and are the key to obtaining local participation.

Why your state should use the National Center for Rural Health Works?

Communities know that health care is critical to the physical and mental well being of its citizens; however, health care is also critical to the economic well being of the community.   If local health care should disappear, as much as 20 percent of the local economy would go with it.

Rural communities now see their health care systems under fire.   Rural hospitals are closing.   Health care services are being cut.   Physicians will not come to the rural areas, and if physicians do come to rural areas, they usually won't stay.   Medicare and Medicaid payments are too low and have recently been cut.

Rural residents can revitalize their local health care systems.   The National Center for Rural Health Works provides the tools.   Local visionary leadership puts these tools to work.   State-trained teams act as facilitators to the local leadership.   The center assists communities to keep their health care dollars and services at home.