Jefferson Community Health & Life celebrates the Power of Rural on National Rural Health Day on Thursday, Nov. 21.  The National Organization of State Offices of Rural Health sets aside the third Thursday of every November to celebrate National Rural Health Day. Please thank a health care worker for their dedication in keeping exceptional care close to home.

National Rural Health Day is an opportunity to “Celebrate the Power of Rural” by honoring the selfless, community-minded, “can do” spirit of that prevails in rural America. But it also provides an opportunity to bring to light the unique healthcare challenges that rural citizens face – and showcase the efforts of rural healthcare providers, State Offices of Rural Health and other rural stakeholders to address those challenges.

Jefferson Community Health & Life is one of 1,368 Critical Access Hospitals in the United States, and 62 Critical Access Hospitals in the state of Nebraska. The Critical Access Hospital designation is designed to reduce the financial vulnerability of rural hospitals and improve access to healthcare by keeping essential services in rural communities. Critical Access Hospitals receive cost-based Medicare reimbursement. Jefferson Community Health Center became a Critical Access Hospital in 2000.

“Critical Access Hospital status helps us to offer services which might otherwise be less affordable because of fewer patients needing the services,” said Bill Welch, JCH&L interim CEO.

Jefferson Community Health & Life Fairbury Clinic is one of 126 Rural Health Clinics in the state and 5,356 in the United States.

The Rural Health Clinic (RHC) program is intended to increase access to primary care services for patients in rural communities. They are required to use a team approach of physicians working with non-physician providers such as nurse practitioners (NP) and physician assistants (PA) to provide services.

Health care organizations are important for rural communities – not only for accessibility and availability of health care, but also for economic development. Jefferson Community Health & Life is one of many health care providers in Jefferson County, and is the largest health care employer, with more than 250 staff members. JCH&L is consistently one of the top three employers in Jefferson County. Each year JCH&L pays its staff more than $20 million in salary and benefits.

“The jobs at JCH&L require a wide variety of skills, training and education,” Welch said. said.

JCH&L’s primary service area is Jefferson County, with 7,054, residents as of 2023. Patients also come from surrounding counties in Nebraska and Kansas.

Rural communities also have unique healthcare needs. Rural communities must address accessibility, provider shortages, the needs of an aging population, increasing chronic conditions, and largest percentages of uninsured and underinsured citizens, says the National Rural Health Association.

Jefferson Community Health & Life operates a 17-bed, acute-care Critical Access Hospital in Fairbury, Neb., offering inpatient and outpatient services, including surgery, therapy, screenings, and 24-hour emergency services. Jefferson Community Health & Life offers additional health and life services, including Fairbury Clinic (primary and family care), Burkley Fitness Center, Gardenside (long-term care), and Home Health services. In addition, Jefferson Community Health & Life supports numerous education programs and support groups. JCH&L has offered services to residents of Jefferson County and the surrounding area since 1963, and continues to grow and change as the area’s needs change.

“We strive to fulfil our vision of being a trusted partner for a lifetime of health,” Welch said. “We are proud to give area residents the opportunity to receive quality healthcare in a convenient location with professional and compassionate staff. Our area residents have much to celebrate on National Rural Health Day.”

A Reindeer Fun Walk will be held Dec. 6 by Jefferson Community Health & Life Burkley Fitness Center during the Fairbury Chamber of Commerce Miracle on the Square.

The Reindeer Fun Walk is for all ages, and gives individuals and families a chance to get into the holiday spirit with a walk around the courthouse square.

Registration free is $5 per person. Each participant received a set of blinking reindeer antlers.

Pre-registration is encouraged at the Burkley Fitness Center. Walk-ins are welcome, but there is no guarantee of antlers.

Check in begins at the corner of Fifth and E streets at 5 p.m. The walk begins at 5:30 p.m.

For more information, contact the Burkley Fitness Center at 402-729-6139.

Concrete repair work at Jefferson Community Health & Life began on Tuesday. Work by Lottman Concrete has begun at the Outpatient and ER entrance. The entrance will remain open, but there will be portions of the sidewalk and driveway blocked at various times.

There will be no service disruptions. Any patient or customer who needs assistance should call 402-729-6851 during daytime hours or 402-729-3351 for ER assistance in evening or overnight hours.

“We apologize for any inconvenience. It is important for the safety of our patients, customers and staff that we repair the concrete areas where there are potential trip hazards. We thank everyone for their patience. Please don’t hesitate to ask if you need assistance,” said Bill Welch, interim CEO.

The project will continue around the JCH&L campus.

For a second year, Jefferson Community Health & Life and Fairbury FBLA have teamed up to raise cancer awareness. The project raised $1,400, which will provide gas cards for cancer patients who need to travel.

In September, Fairbury FBLA and JCH&L sold pink cancer awareness t-shirts, and had special pink out games and days at work. JCH&L staff members also contributed to a denim day (where they could jeans for a donation to the cause.) A total of 269 shirts were sold. The total raised by the projects was $1,400.

FBLA donated $1,400 in gas cards to JCH&L to be available for cancer patients who need to travel.

A convocation was held at Fairbury Jr-Sr High School on Monday, Oct. 28, to raise awareness of cancer, and FHS held a “wear pink” day. Darcy Kapke and Christina Cole spoke of their personal experiences with cancer, and took questions from students and school staff. The FBLA presented gas cards to JCH&L. FBLA drew a name from each grade, and if they were wearing pink they got a prize.

“This is a wonderful project and partnership between Fairbury FBLA and Jefferson Community Health & Life,” said Bill Welch, interim CEO at JCH&L. “We are pleased to partner with the students to raise awareness and provide support to cancer patients.”

A free Medicare D review event will be held at Jefferson Community Health & Life on Wednesday, Oct. 30. The event will offer participants a free unbiased review of their Medicare D options with certified SHIP counselors.

Medicare D open enrollment is Oct. 15 through Dec. 7. This is the time that participant can review Medicare D available plans and change plans if needed. There have been several changes to plans for 2025 so it is a good idea to review your coverage to make sure you have the best possible coverage for the next year.

Appointments are required by calling 402-587-5184 and leaving a message with their name and a phone number where they can be reached. Participants must bring with them to the appointment their complete list of prescription medications including dosage and how often they take it. They will also be asked to bring their login credentials if they already have a Medicare online account.