Rural Health and Primary Care

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What's New and Featured Resources

The Health Resources and Services Administration is now accepting applications for the Pediatric Specialty Loan Repayment Program until July 20, 2023 at 7:30 PM ET. This program provides loan repayment for eligible pediatric medical specialists, pediatric surgical specialist, or child and adolescent behavioral health care providers.

For more information on the program please see the flyer (PDF)

The Health Resources and Services Administration is now accepting applications for the Substance Use Disorder Treatment and Recovery (STAR) Loan Repayment Program until July 13, 2023 at 7:30 PM ET. This program provides loan repayment to eligible SUD Professionals working in a Mental Health Professional Service Area.

For more information on the program please see the flyer (PDF)

Recently, Kate Hill, RN, from the Compliance Team gave a presentation to Maine’s Rural Health Clinics on Regulatory Updates.

The slides from this presentation can be found here: (Maine RHC June 2023 (PDF)
You can find the recording of the presentation here.
Passcode: Crp0ZH.$

There will be another session held on June 20, 2023 at 12:00 PM ET. This session will be hosted by Kristen Ogden, RN, also from the Compliance Team. Kristen will cover Evaluating Quality and Satisfaction for RHCs. If you would like more information on the next session, please see this flyer (PDF)

The Federal Office of Rural Health Policy is pleased to announce that the Rural Maternity and Obstetrics Management Strategies Program (RMOMS) is now open on grants.gov (announcement number: HRSA-23-049) and accepting applications through July 7, 2023. A total of $2 million is anticipated to fund up to two health networks in this cooperative agreement program.

The purpose of the RMOMS program is to preserve access to and continuity of maternal and obstetrics care in rural communities that address the following RMOMS Focus Areas: 1) Rural Hospital Obstetric Service Aggregation; 2) Approaches to Risk Appropriate Care; and 3) Financial Sustainability.

This year, the RMOMS program is providing a funding priority for areas with the highest maternity care health professional target areas (MCTAs) scores.

FORHP is hosting a webinar on June 5, 2023, from 3:00 – 3:30 PM ET, exclusively for SORH staff to learn more about how SORH can support organizations in their state that are interested in applying for this funding opportunity. FORHP is also hosting a technical assistance webinar about the program on May 31, 2023 from 2 p.m. – 3 p.m. ET for all interested applicants. The link to the webinar can be found here: https://hrsa-gov.zoomgov.com/j/1603630214?pwd=eGpkSHFwS0s4d3BWWm5xamFrUE5zZz09

The Maine Rural Health & Primary Care Program is pleased to share this upcoming ECHO training series.

Please see attached flyer (PDF) for an upcoming; the 8-week, case-based curriculum aims to train clinicians in primary care pain management strategies, including non-opioid and non-pharmacologic treatment options, substance use screening, risk reduction counseling, and tapering strategies for opioids and benzodiazepines. Sessions will be held Thursdays from 12-1 pm ET beginning May 18th. If you are interested in attending, see the flyer for the registration link.

The 2023 Kids Count Data Book has recently been released. This year’s book focuses on key indicators like Child Poverty, Child Welfare, and Teen Mental Health to name a few. You can find the data book on the Maine Children’s Alliance website (PDF).

Thanks to all who attended the Listening Session on the Statewide Rational Service Areas. For those who were unable to attend or would like to rewatch, the session was recorded and can be found here: Watch the Recording (passcode cv0zZv$4). You can also look at the handouts that were discussed in the presentation (PDF) and you can download the slides from the presentation here.

Please reach out to our office with any questions.

3RNET has recently launched their 3RNET PLUS TOOLS. Please follow this link (PDF) for a one pager with information on the 3RNET PLUS TOOLS including a video.