Rural Health Summit 2021: COVID-19 and the Rural Health Workforce
Rural residents in Illinois have long faced significant health provider shortages. As a result, rural residents often wait longer for a provider visit or forego medical, mental health or dental care altogether. The pandemic has exacerbated the challenges of attracting and retaining rural health talent as hospitals and healthcare systems in rural areas close or reduce services. The pandemic also increased instances of stress, burnout and death of the rural health workforce.
The SIU Medicine Department of Population Science and Policy and UIC School of Public Health are hosting a virtual discussion with rural health experts on October 14 from noon to 1 p.m. to identify ways to expand the rural health workforce.
RURAL HEALTH WORKFORCE POLICY BRIEF
Webinar speakers include:
- Amy Fox, who is the Administrator at Tazewell County Health Department. She has worked in public health for over 31 years in the area of community health improvement planning, health promotion, substance abuse prevention, coalition development, and emergency preparedness.
- Dr. Hana Hinkle has held leadership positions in both public health and academic medicine. Prior to joining the University of Illinois College of Medicine, she served as the Director of Community Health Personnel Services for a rural health department in northern Illinois. She currently serves as the Interim Director and Department Head of the National Center for Rural Health Professions at the University of Illinois College of Medicine, Rockford.
- Dr. Jim "JD" Daniels is board certified in Family Medicine and Preventive Medicine. He worked at SIU School of Medicine for almost three decades in various roles, including Residency Program Director, Fellowship Director, Vice Chair, and Assistant Dean.
- Leticia Boughton Price, CHW, MSW, is the current President of the Illinois Community Health Workers Association. As President, she is responsible for sustaining and growing the first CHW Association for Illinois. The goal of ILCHWA is to unite CHWs, CHW groups, stakeholders, and allies to create one voice and advocate for policies around CHW interests.
- Guiddi Kapadia, MPH, will be the guest moderator for this session. She has been working in public health workforce education and development for over 15 years at the UIC School of Public Health.
LEARN MORE ABOUT THE RURAL HEALTH SUMMIT
REGISTER FOR ALL UPCOMING RURAL HEALTH SUMMIT WEBINAR SERIES HERE
These webinars are sponsored by ICAHN, Illinois AHEC Network, Healthlink, and the Illinois Farm Bureau, in cooperation with the SIU Medicine Population Science and Policy, SIU Medicine Center for Rural Health and Social Service Development, SIU Paul Simon Public Policy Institute, and the University of Illinois Chicago School of Public Health.
