VIEW the Appalachian Regional Commission’s reports and analysis on the state- and county-level data for Population, Education, Employment, Income and Poverty, and Computer and Broadband Access in Appalachia.
Ballad Health and ETSU Collaborations for Increased Research on Rural Health
Ballad Health has announced that their 10-year investment in ETSU’s newly established Center for Rural Health Research will include an in-depth study on rural hospitals. Harvard Medical Center will assist with researching how non-urban markets – where a recent surge has forced many hospitals to span across markets and state lines – struggle to keep themselves at a competitive advantage. The new study will also seek to find the predictors of hospital closure and acquisition. The hope for the study is to provide a better informed view of the rural health system for future policy decisions.
Click HERE to read.
In addition to this study, Ballad Health’s Strong BRAIN – ‘Building Resilience through ACEs-Informed Networking’ – Institute will shed a light on the impact adverse childhood experiences have on the developing brain. The CDC estimates that “1.9 mil cases of heart disease and 21 mil cases of depression could have been avoided by preventing those events”. This is key information for SWVA residents seeing as how their health is driven by income, education, access to healthy food, and other social determinants of health.
Click HERE to read.
Ballad Health partners with Mayo Clinic for COVID-19 research study
Ballad Health has recently joined a national study aimed at looking for alternative ways to fight COVID-19. The Marsh Regional Blood Center has partnered with the health system to collect samples necessary for their research.
‘One donation can potentially be used to treat as many as three patients.’
Click HERE to read.
HOW TO WEAR AND SANITIZE THE RIGHT MASK FOR YOU
MASK MAKER MASK FINDER
Donate your PPE to GMEC and VRHA!
Has your business been temporarily closed by COVID 19? GMEC and VRHA will buy your PPE so long as it’s not price gouged. We can also give donation receipts, and organize mailing or pick-up.
NBC News: Coronavirus strains rural hospitals to ‘the absolute limit’
Although coronavirus has yet to make the same harsh impact on rural communities as in metropolitan areas around the United States, their financial reality may drastically reduce their best efforts when preparing for the worst.
Most facilities have already to turned to telehealth in order to minimize that one-on-one contact. However, as Beth O’Connor, director of the Virginia Rural Health Association, states, “Many of our rural families, and even many of our rural hospitals and clinics, don’t have the bandwidth that they need to be able to participate in telehealth service. So when you have something like this pandemic when you would prefer to see someone virtually, it’s just not possible.”
Click HERE to read.
How to Make a Face Mask: Protection Against COVID-19
Join others in learning how to sew face masks for your community members that desperately need them! Click HERE to view easy-to-follow instructions and a video made by Deaconess Hospital staff.
PLEASE SEND MASKS!
CHECK YOUR BARNS! (and garages, workrooms, etc.) Have you got boxes of gloves (latex, plastic, or vinyl), N95 face masks? Those are badly needed and GMEC can make sure they get redistributed. Have you got surgical masks, face shields, plastic dust masks, safety goggles? Those are needed as well.
If you are hand-sewing masks, we also have locations that need those. They are not front-line COVID but are VERY useful for other parts of care. If you would like to sew masks, we can send you patterns.
THANKS and PLEASE check your basements et al. We’ve sent several N95s to small clinics because of kind people willing to share what they have. EVERY donation will help keep our rural communities safe.
Contact director@swvagmec.com so we can tell you where to mail, or collect. Thanks!
VDH: COVID-19 Cases in Virginia
The Virginia Department of Health is alerting the public of new coronavirus cases on a daily basis. Check the VDH website for prevention tips and the latest updates.
