Shining a Light on Rural Health in America: Nationwide Observance of National Rural Health Day 2017

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National Organization of State Offices of Rural Health

Nov 08, 2017, 09:45 ET

STERLING HEIGHTS, Mich., Nov. 8, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- One in five Americans – over 60 million people – live and work in rural areas. The National Organization of State Offices of Rural Health (SORH), rural healthcare providers, industry partners, Federal and state agencies alike will observe National Rural Health Day on Thursday, Nov. 16, 2017, an observance that to date, has received Governor's Proclamations from 19 States across the U.S.

The overriding theme of National Rural Health Day, #PowerofRural, strives to give a voice to the efforts of those who are working to serve the unique healthcare needs that exist in America's rural communities.

As part of National Rural Health Day, the National Organization of State Offices of Rural Health (NOSORH) will host a series of free webinars on Nov. 16 open to media, rural health leaders, and stakeholders on timely rural health topics, including the latest on Federal rural health policy and the rural opioid crisis. In addition, the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP) will highlight the Power of Rural and center on the Health Resources and Services Administration's (HRSAs) Bureaus and Offices and HHS agencies collaborations to improve rural health. Plans include a series of Twitter chats, one topic a day at 3 p.m. EST on Monday (the 13th) Tuesday (the 14th), and Wednesday (the 15th). The topics will focus on workforce development, the social determinants of health and behavioral health, respectively. To join the Twitter chat conversations, follow @HRSAgov and the #OurRural.

In addition to web-based events, NOSORH partnered with Walk with a Doc, an organization founded by Columbus, Ohio-based cardiologist Dr. David Sabgir, who in 2005, launched a grassroots campaign designed to promote behavior change aimed at improving the health of patients. Today, Walk with a Doc has over 300 Chapters Nationwide, all invited to host a bonus walk on Nov. 16, along with rural hospitals and clinics. Kirby Medical Center in Monticello, Illinois, and Columbia Memorial Hospital located in Astoria, Oregon, are among those hosting walks for their communities.

On National Rural Health Day, NOSORH is asking each State Office, hospitals, health clinics, rural community leaders and legislators to use the #PowerofRural in social media at 11:16 a.m. in each time zone and throughout the day. To learn more about National Rural Health Day and the line-up of events and features, visit http://www.PowerofRural.org.

To schedule an interview with a National Rural Health Day spokesperson, contact Michelle Rathman, President, Impact! Communications, Inc. [email protected] | on Twitter @MRBImpact

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SOURCE National Organization of State Offices of Rural Health