Access Council

The Access Council is examining rural health care access issues related to primary care, specialty care, emergency medical services, and mental and dental health care in order to make recommendations for improving health care access.

Updates

Recommendations

Access to quality, affordable and accessible health care services is essential and should be an expectation of all rural residents. Access must not be limited solely to primary and acute care, but must include a greater integration of mental/behavioral health, EMS, dental/oral health, telehealth, women’s health services, preventive care and health promotion and education.

  1. Establish the Virginia Rural Health Access Council.
  2. Research existing models of care that integrate primary care with mental/behavioral health within Virginia and in other states.
  3. Develop pilot projects that focus on the integration of quality systems of care.
  4. Assess the presence or absence of referral networks.
  5. Update Virginia’s 2004 Rural Obstetrical Care report.
  6. Identify models of care and best practices from other rural areas around the nation and internationally, including telehealth models.
  7. Hold a rural EMS Summit to address rural EMS issues, including availability of EMS services, EMS leadership and management and EMS integration into the rural health care infrastructure.
  8. Disseminate and present findings from the 2007 and 2008 Critical Access Hospital (CAH) - EMS assessments upon completion.
  9. Update Virginia’s statewide dental/oral health plan.
  10. Explore the development of rural health care student associations and/or interest groups.
  11. Explore ways to strengthen existing and develop new community engagement initiatives.
  12. Research school-based health care models in rural areas.
  13. Provide expert consultation and training to CAHs on the use of distinct part units (DPUs).
  14. Promote a statewide telehealth system for health care (especially mental/behavioral health) and health education.
  15. Improve the health information technology infrastructure for rural health providers and
    patients.

Updates

Date Document/Update
10/13/11 2011 Access Council Workplan
6/24/11 Access Council Annual Report
7/20/10 Access Council meeting minutes
7/7/10 2010 Access Council Membership
6/29/2010 2010 Access Council Workplan
11/15/2009

Best Practices and Models of Care in Rural Health: A Compendium for the Virginia Rural Health Access Council. By Anjali Dotson and Fatima Sharif

Full report
Executive Summary
10/7/09 Preliminary Analysis of Pilot Data: Integrated Behavioral Health Care Study, Southwest Virginia Community Health Systems, Inc., Submitted by Dr. McFeature
10/5/09 A Study of Child and Adolescent Behavioral Health within Selected Regions in the Commonwealth of Virginia, Wayne G Terry, Southside AHEC, Karen Purcell, Capital AHEC and Susan Alford, Southwest AHEC (Recipients of the Planning Grants)
2/19/09 Access Council Meeting Minutes
  Patient Centered Medical Home (RAC Online)