Attending the Rural Health Association of TN conference was an experience. I enjoyed learning more about health care statistics/concerns specific to Tennessee and the role ancillary health care workers like billing staff, CMS inspectors, and social workers fulfill in providing patient education and facility compensation. The speakers were knowledgeable and seemed to be passionate about improving the rural healthcare system. I also enjoyed the collaborative atmosphere of the conference. It was nice to see how excited the RHAT members were to network and learn from each other. Some of my key takeaways from the conference include the following:
Politics and restrictive legislation are major barriers to rural healthcare reform/improvement in Tennessee. Initiatives to improve teen pregnancy rates are handicapped by legislature such as the Gateway Sexual Activity Bill. This bill focuses on abstinence only sexual education and severely limits the educators’ ability to teach about sexual activities that can contribute to STI transmission like oral or anal sexual activities. Presenters at the conference also spoke about how the bill prohibits them from demonstrating how to apply condoms. Teach back verify is a powerful, evidence-based patient education tool we speak about frequently in nursing school. In my opinion, the state of Tennessee is doing at risk adolescents a disservice by not allowing the educators to use this strategy. I also feel like the lack of comprehensive, medically accurate sexual education negatively impacts other areas of rural health care like maternal care. We learned that Tennessee has a high rate of congenital syphilis in one of the maternal care breakout sessions. Additionally, the presentations on the One Big Beautiful Bill were eye-opening. I think the bill is going to put a lot of strain on an already strained health care system and make rural health disparities worse. Many rural Tennesseans are going to be without health insurance due to Medicaid cuts and the loss of ACA insurance plan premiums. I believe loss of insurance is going to reduce rural hospital compensation and increase the burden on rural emergency departments because preventative care will be harder for patients to access. Political activism/outreach educating political figures and the public about evidenced based practices is going to be very important for improving the rural health care system and reducing rural healthcare barriers.
Limited funding and low reimbursement rates are a problem for many rural healthcare facilities and rural healthcare improvement programs. Making sure rural healthcare facilities are compliant with CMS regulations and educating rural healthcare organizations about grant opportunities and other funding sources are strategies being used to combat these struggles.
The RHAT Conference was a great experience that helped us learn more about and gain a better understanding of the different rural health problems and solutions happening across Tennessee. It was also a great opportunity to see the variety of rural health related opportunities available around the state through the many booths that were set up.
One of my key takeaways from this conference came from listening to the speaker from Washington. She highlighted valuable statistics that pointed out the lack of funding and opportunities that rural communities and healthcare systems often experience. She also gave a detailed presentation about the different ways the government shutdown affected rural health communities, and it was enlightening to see how deeply this impacts our communities. At the end of her presentation, she gave us a call to action by encouraging us to email our representatives and continue advocating for healthcare in rural communities.
Other important takeaways came from attending several maternal health breakout sessions. One session we had the opportunity to attend, focused on the mental health of postpartum women and how it disproportionately affects those living in rural communities due to the lack of resources and the continued stigma surrounding mental health. We also attended a breakout session that gave insight into why so many labor and delivery departments are shutting down in rural communities. This was especially interesting to us as a group because the hospital where we work is getting rid of its labor and delivery department, making this topic very relevant to our own experiences.
Overall, the RHAT Conference was extremely insightful and was a great way to introduce us to many important issues we had not previously thought about or considered while living in rural communities.
The RHAT Conference allowed me and my classmates the opportunity to learn about rising concerns and the things that are happening in healthcare in Tennessee.
One key takeaway I had was from the maternal child breakout session with the speaker from the health department. She told us about the rising lack of healthcare for women in Tennessee. She presented us with a visual map of Tennessee highlighting the fact that a lot of OB units have closed this year. I thought this resonated with me and my group of fellow scholars from The University of Tennessee Southern because the hospital that we are doing our externship at recently closed their OB unit. I think it is important to advocate for women and expecting mothers during this time.
Another important takeaway I had regards the breakout session about adolescents sexual health. Most of the material revolves around abstinence. The speakers talked to us about things that are in the material that they teach to the children and they explained things that they can and can’t say in regards to sexual health. I did not realize that there were so many gaps in the lessons that adolescents are taught.
The speaker from Washington gave us statistics about healthcare, costs, and barriers. I found this interesting to learn about. As a young individual entering into the healthcare world I think it is important to keep up with statistics and politics in regards to healthcare and how it affects the way you deliver care, especially in rural communities.
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Keidra Gardner replied on Permalink
Key Takeaways from RHAT Conference
Attending the Rural Health Association of TN conference was an experience. I enjoyed learning more about health care statistics/concerns specific to Tennessee and the role ancillary health care workers like billing staff, CMS inspectors, and social workers fulfill in providing patient education and facility compensation. The speakers were knowledgeable and seemed to be passionate about improving the rural healthcare system. I also enjoyed the collaborative atmosphere of the conference. It was nice to see how excited the RHAT members were to network and learn from each other. Some of my key takeaways from the conference include the following:
Keidra Gardner replied on
Sophia Iacobelli replied on Permalink
Key Takeaways from the Rural Health Association of TN conference
The RHAT Conference was a great experience that helped us learn more about and gain a better understanding of the different rural health problems and solutions happening across Tennessee. It was also a great opportunity to see the variety of rural health related opportunities available around the state through the many booths that were set up.
One of my key takeaways from this conference came from listening to the speaker from Washington. She highlighted valuable statistics that pointed out the lack of funding and opportunities that rural communities and healthcare systems often experience. She also gave a detailed presentation about the different ways the government shutdown affected rural health communities, and it was enlightening to see how deeply this impacts our communities. At the end of her presentation, she gave us a call to action by encouraging us to email our representatives and continue advocating for healthcare in rural communities.
Other important takeaways came from attending several maternal health breakout sessions. One session we had the opportunity to attend, focused on the mental health of postpartum women and how it disproportionately affects those living in rural communities due to the lack of resources and the continued stigma surrounding mental health. We also attended a breakout session that gave insight into why so many labor and delivery departments are shutting down in rural communities. This was especially interesting to us as a group because the hospital where we work is getting rid of its labor and delivery department, making this topic very relevant to our own experiences.
Overall, the RHAT Conference was extremely insightful and was a great way to introduce us to many important issues we had not previously thought about or considered while living in rural communities.
Sophia Iacobelli replied on
Emily Watson replied on Permalink
RHAT Conference
The RHAT Conference allowed me and my classmates the opportunity to learn about rising concerns and the things that are happening in healthcare in Tennessee.
One key takeaway I had was from the maternal child breakout session with the speaker from the health department. She told us about the rising lack of healthcare for women in Tennessee. She presented us with a visual map of Tennessee highlighting the fact that a lot of OB units have closed this year. I thought this resonated with me and my group of fellow scholars from The University of Tennessee Southern because the hospital that we are doing our externship at recently closed their OB unit. I think it is important to advocate for women and expecting mothers during this time.
Another important takeaway I had regards the breakout session about adolescents sexual health. Most of the material revolves around abstinence. The speakers talked to us about things that are in the material that they teach to the children and they explained things that they can and can’t say in regards to sexual health. I did not realize that there were so many gaps in the lessons that adolescents are taught.
The speaker from Washington gave us statistics about healthcare, costs, and barriers. I found this interesting to learn about. As a young individual entering into the healthcare world I think it is important to keep up with statistics and politics in regards to healthcare and how it affects the way you deliver care, especially in rural communities.
Emily Watson replied on