JCH&L To Celebrate National Rural Health Day Nov. 15

Jefferson Community Health & Life will join the National Organization of State Offices of Rural Health (NOSORH) and other state/national rural stakeholders in celebrating National Rural Health Day on Thursday, November 15, with refreshments at its Fairbury Clinic and Plymouth Clinic.

NOSORH created National Rural Health Day as a way to showcase rural America; increase awareness of rural health-related issues; and promote the efforts of NOSORH, State Offices of Rural Health and others in addressing those issues. National Rural Health Day is an annual day of recognition which occurs on the third Thursday of November and was awarded the 2018 “Outstanding Rural Health Program of the Year” by the National Rural Health Association.

Events recognizing National Rural Health Day and “Celebrating the Power of Rural” are being planned throughout the nation. Refreshments will be available in the lobbies of JCH&L Fairbury Clinic from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and Plymouth Clinic from 10 a.m. to noon and 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.

More than 60 million people – nearly one in five Americans – live in rural and frontier communities throughout the United States. “These small towns, farming communities and frontier areas are wonderful places to live and work; they are places where neighbors know each other and work together,” said NOSORH Director Teryl Eisinger. “The hospitals and providers serving these rural communities not only provide quality patient care, but they also help keep good jobs in rural America.”

These communities also face unique health care needs. “Today more than ever, rural communities must tackle accessibility issues, a lack of health care providers, the needs of an aging population suffering from a greater number of chronic conditions, and larger percentages of un- and underinsured citizens,” Eisinger said. “Meanwhile, rural hospitals are threatened with declining reimbursement rates and disproportionate funding levels that makes it challenging to serve their residents.”

State Offices of Rural Health play a key role in addressing those needs. All 50 states maintain a State Office of Rural Health, each of which shares a similar mission: to foster relationships, disseminate information and provide technical assistance that improves access to, and the quality of, health care for its rural citizens. In the past year alone, State Offices of Rural Health collectively provided technical assistance to more than 28,000 rural communities.

Additional information about National Rural Health Day can be found at PowerofRural.org. To learn more about NOSORH, visit www.nosorh.org; to learn more about Jefferson Community Health & Life visit JCHealthandLife.org.