Contents:
WINTER 2012
Contents: |
WINTER 2012 |
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DIRECTOR'S COLUMN |
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 Mark Schoenbaum |
IT WAS 20 YEARS AGOIn 1992, the Minnesota Legislature considered major health reform legislation that would create the MinnesotaCare coverage program when passed. Among the concerns voiced during that session were doubts there would be an adequate health care workforce and misgivings that a wave of anticipated consolidations would harm rural communities’ access to care. Worried the law would end the ability of rural health leaders to have a say in these major changes, rural legislators insisted that to earn their support, the law must be responsive to rural needs and characteristics. On a parallel track, both state and federal leaders were recognizing that state leadership was needed to improve primary care services for underserved urban communities. The intersection of these trends created the Office of Rural Health and Primary Care in 1992. Its mission: to promote access to quality healthcare for rural and underserved urban Minnesotans. Mark Schoenbaum is director of the Office of Rural Health and Primary Care and can be reached at mark.schoenbaum@state.mn.us or 651-201-3859. |
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PARTNER FOCUS |
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MINNESOTA'S FIRST SENIOR-FOCUSED COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERTucked away in a corner of north Minneapolis is a kind of oasis for seniors. Surrounded by landscaped green space, the new Heritage Park Senior Campus offers assisted living, memory care and an elegant community center that brings together a range of elder-tailored health and wellness services, including a “boutique” YMCA open only to those 55 years and older, an indoor walking path and one of the state’s few therapy pools. This summer, a Community Health Center (CHC) joined the mix, with the new Heritage Seniors Clinic. Read the rest of the story. |
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SPECIAL FEATURE |
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TAKING A STEP TOWARD BETTER HEALTHby Amber Dallman and Chera L. Sevcik A hot, 95-degree day did not stop 25 citizens and community leaders from attending a walkability and bikeability workshop in St. James on Tuesday, September 11. The workshop, facilitated by the Minnesota Department of Health, provided communities in Watonwan County with information on how street and community design is essential to increasing physical activity levels and improving the health of their community. Read the rest of the story. |
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RHAC MEMBER PROFILE |
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ORHPC TALKS WITH RURAL HEALTH ADVISORY COMMITTEE (RHAC) MEMBER NANCY STRATMANPlease explain your professional work to us . . .I’m a licensed nursing home administrator working as the CEO/Administrator at the senior campus of Cokato Charitable Trust in Cokato, which is about an hour west of the Twin Cities. The campus consists of a 56-bed skilled facility, 46 units of assisted living, a 10-bed dementia unit, a Medicare-certified Home Health agency, home-delivered meals, child day care and adult day care. We serve a total of about 225 people in the community and employ about 180 staff. I am also a board member for Aging Services of MN and the Aging Services Group, a member of the state’s Diabetes Steering Committee and chair-elect of Care Ventures Cooperative. On RHAC, I am the Long-Term Care Representative. Read the rest of the story. |
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View online all previous issues of the Office of Rural Health and Primary Care publications. |
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MISSION: To promote access to quality health care for rural and underserved urban Minnesotans. From our unique position within state government, we work as partners with communities, providers, policymakers and other organizations. Together, we develop innovative approaches and tailor our tools and resources to the diverse populations we serve. |
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