State Offices of Rural Health TA Data Collection Form

State Offices of Rural Health
Grant Number: H95RH00100
Organization: ALABAMA DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH
Start Date:

07/01/2014

End Date:

06/30/2015

Report Due Date:

09/14/2015

Total number of technical assistance (TA) encounters provided directly to clients within your State
by SORH: 1429
Examples of Different Types of TA Provided
Types of TA Provided

Number

Description

R In-Depth Telephone and
email interactions

1102

Provided considerable data to Cahaba Medical Care
Foundation (an FQHC corporation) for a grant to expand
services to a new location in the Bessemer service area.

R Webinar Technology

27

An introduction to Grant Writing webinar was presented on
July 8, 2014, and was attended by 49 rural health care
stakeholders.

R Thru Teleconference

42

A teleconference was held with DCH Regional Medical
Center in Tuscaloosa to discuss the possibility of their using
Alabama Department of Public Health tele-medicine
equipment stationed in highly rural Marengo and Perry
counties for the purpose of providing tele-prenatal care.
Neither of these counties have hospitals providing
obstetrical services.

R Face to Face

129

Traveled to multiple Certified Rural Health Clinics in
northwest Alabama over a two-day period to discuss their
needs and inform them about services offered by Alabama¶s
SORH.

R Other

129

Worked with other professionals in the Alabama Department
of Public Health in designing, conducting, assuring the
accuracy and completeness of, analyzing, publishing, and
presenting on statewide and regional findings from a survey
of over 6,000 individuals and over 500 organizations
identifying the 13 leading health care issues in Alabama.
Special effort was included to identify issues in rural areas
and to present these issues in subsequent outreach
initiatives.

Total number of clients within your State that received TA directly from SORH:
Examples of Different Types of Clients that Received TA

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655

State Offices of Rural Health
Grant Number: H95RH00100
Organization: ALABAMA DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH
Start Date:

07/01/2014

Types of Clients that
Received TA

End Date:

06/30/2015

Number

Report Due Date:

09/14/2015

Description

R Communities

72

Made a public presentation at a community forum in highly
rural Randolph County informing the residents of what to
expect if a sales tax vote was defeated and their last
remaining hospital closed. Considerable research was
conducted on this subject and data was provided backing up
expectations. This was done without taking an official stand
on the vote. The sales tax was approved by 86 percent of
those voting in the referendum.

R Government Officials

82

Worked closely with the Alabama Rural Development Office
in gathering information on how tele-medicine and telehealth were being utilized in Alabama. There is currently no
private insurance reimbursement for this service in
Alabama. This information is being used to inform the public
about the value of this technology and its potential for rural
residents.

R Academic Institutions

45

Assisted the University of Alabama at Birmingham in
obtaining the services of a neonatologists to assist in the
study of infant mortality in Alabama. Alabama currently has
the second highest infant mortality rate among all 50 states.

R Associations

45

Met with officials from the Alabama Rural Coalition for the
Homeless to update them on the status of rural health care
and learn more about their programs. A new partnership
with great potential was developed through this effort.

R Agencies

47

Conducted a study on the economic impact of establishing a
joint internal medicine and dental residency program in the
Colbert County area of Alabama¶s Shoals Region. This
report was conducted for the Shoals Area Economic
Development Authority. This project involves two formerly
competing academic institutions working together on this
program addressing one of rural Alabama¶s greatest health
care needs.

R Networks

26

Provided data and other technical assistance to Gulf Health
Hospitals, Inc. in several Alabama locations which resulted
in the awarding of a $300,000 Rural Health Network
Development Grant and a USDA Distance
Learning/Telehealth Grant award.

R Emergency Medical
Services (EMS)

2

Made a presentation to the Randolph County Association of
Fire Chiefs, which is also the county EMS association, on
the status of health care in that county with emphasis on
those conditions requiring the quickest EMS response.

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State Offices of Rural Health
Grant Number: H95RH00100
Organization: ALABAMA DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH
Start Date:

07/01/2014

End Date:

06/30/2015

Report Due Date:

09/14/2015

R Clinics

154

Provided detailed information and guidance to 16 clinics
which were considering conversion to a Certified Rural
Health Clinic, FQHC, or FQHC Look-Alike. Several of these
clinics completed conversion to Certified Rural Health
Clinics.

R Hospitals

103

Assisted all rural hospitals in Alabama with their public
transportation concerns by conducting a detailed survey of
the status of public transportation in Alabama and producing
the first-ever report on this subject. All rural hospitals were
contacted and interviewed about their specific public
transportation assets and needs. This report is being widely
disseminated to involved stakeholders.

R Providers

56

Joined with the Alabama Rural Health Association in
presenting an ICD-10 Coding Boot Camp for rural providers.
This training included the awarding of continuing education
credits for nurses and social workers. This was attended by
several physicians as well as members of their staffs.

R Other

23

Made presentations to student rural health organizations at
several Alabama college and university campuses on the
need for rural health care providers, their economic impacts,
and on ways to have student debt forgiven in return for
service in underserved areas.

Any Comments About this Form or the Data You Entered:
The high number of technical assistance events for this grant year is due to an exceptionally large
number of activities that were involved in a state-wide Community Health Assessment and the
development and implementation of a Community Health Improvement Plan. Those initiatives involved
surveying over 6,000 individuals and 500 different organizations, and working with a myriad of state,
private, and non-profit organizations. Additional activities were also incurred in relation to rural hospital
sustainability issues and the ongoing transition in the health care environment from volume-based to a
value-based system.
Is this Form Complete?

Yes

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