April 2021 Newsletter
This year, the UMTRC will be hosting our 3rd Annual Conference in-person!!! The conference will be held at the Gillespie Conference Center in South Bend, Indiana. An evening reception will welcome everyone on Monday, July 19th; conference sessions will be held on July 20-21.
We have extended our speaker proposal submission deadline to 5pm ET on Monday, April 12th. More information for exhibitors and individual registrations will be available soon! We hope to see you in South Bend!
|
|
UMTRC Telehealth Workshops
If you couldn’t make it to our February or March workshop, don’t worry! You’ve got two more opportunities! Based on feedback from the July 2020 UMTRC Annual Conference, the UMTRC is excited to host one-day telehealth workshops.
Join us on April 16th or May 14th to hear speakers from the IRHA and UMTRC teams, where we will cover a variety of topics from Needs Assessment and Consent Forms to Remote Patient Monitoring. While we certainly hope to offer this in-person in the future, you don’t want to miss this chance to participate virtually and earn AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™.
The UMTRC is offering scholarships to the first 100 individuals in each of our four regions (Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio) to attend the workshop at no cost.
View the agenda HERE.
Virtual Workshop Dates:
April 16, 2021
May 14, 2021
|
|
Illinois Telehealth Network Uses Technology to Triage, Deliver Behavioral Health More Efficiently
April 5, 2021 - The Illinois Telehealth Network (ITN), led by HSHS Good Shepherd Hospital (Shelbyville, IL), is a 28-member organization consisting of critical access, rural and urban hospitals and healthcare partners, rural clinics, FQHCs, an ACO, physician groups and medical homes, mental health services and a school district.
The ITN is a rural health network development project that increases rural access to specialty health care by collaboratively developing telehealth and telemedicine to facilitate encounters between
patients and providers. The ITN provides support to its members with education, training and counsel. HSHS St. John’s Hospital, based in Springfield, Illinois, is directly responsible for assisting eight HSHS Illinois hospitals with telehealth implementation and acts as a hub for many ITN members.
Although ITN members have been offering some telehealth services over the past several years, the onset of the coronavirus pandemic accelerated implementation and boosted provider interest. “One of the biggest benefits during this time has been the increased interest in telehealth,” said Katie Mueller, ITN network director. “It’s always been a bit of a challenge to get the buy-in we needed, and now we have many providers coming to us with new ideas of how to implement telehealth.”
|
|
Mental Health Challenges Blog
So many things have changed with COVID and the global pandemic. It has been the elephant in the room that we have lived with for over a year now. During this past year, so many of us have had days where we felt down and depressed. While there are many efforts to remove the stigma about behavioral health issues, it is still not a truly open discussion yet among peers.
|
|
UMTRC Podcasts
Our April 2nd podcast is focused on school based telehealth. Our producer, Caroline Yoder, interviewed Stacy Burris, Director of Foundation and Community Outreach at Greene County Memorial Hospital about her experience with the Indiana Rural Schools Clinic Network. You can access our podcasts through our website or subscribe to them on your favorite podcast platform! New episodes are typically released on the 1st and 3rd Fridays of the month. Our first few episodes have highlighted different programs at the Indiana Rural Health Association, since our UMTRC program would not be possible without them! We are now reaching out to our partners throughout our 4-state region of IL, IN, MI, and OH. If you have a suggestion for a future topic, or would like us to interview you, please complete the form at Podcast Inquiry.
|
|
Upcoming Webinars
IRHA Lunch & Learn Series
Our friends at the Indiana Rural Health Association (IRHA) host an on-going Lunch & Learn series featuring many different healthcare topics from industry leaders. Join them during your lunch hour and learn!
Check out what they have planned for April:
Life Cycle: So Much More Than Bicycles
April 6th, 12:00-1:00pm EST
Life Cycle is a transportation initiative that utilizes the current resources within communities to provide free, safe, and reliable transportation to individuals who are 16+ years or older.
Building Blocks of Harm Reduction: Community Based Sharps Disposal Kiosk
April 20th, 12:00-1:00pm
As Indiana continues to experience an increased rate of Hepatitis C, communities access the state are seeking innovative ways to address their counties rising Hepatitis C rates, Improper syringe disposal, and stigma around the use/possession of a syringe.
|
|
Join Us:
Date: April 30, 2021
Time: 2:00 pm - 3:00 pm EST
Location: Videoconference
Hosted by: Center for Connected Health Policy
Access and Equity in Medicaid Telehealth Policy
Telehealth has demonstrated that it has the potential to make healthcare more accessible for hard-to-reach patient populations in medically underserved communities. However, some lessons from telehealth utilization during the COVID-19 pandemic have raised concerns about access gaps for these patients. Join the Center for Connected Health Policy (CCHP) and leading Medicaid experts for their Spring webinar series, Access and Equity in Medicaid Telehealth Policy. This webinar will feature presentations from Medicaid administrators and policy staff on trends in telehealth access and equity and strategies to address these gaps.
|
|
Additional Training Opportunities
The WhiteBark Health Academy is a branch of the Indiana Rural Health Association that offers continuing education and online training on a variety of topics. We encourage you to explore the site and take advantage of the many training opportunities available. For telehealth related courses, type ‘telehealth’ or ‘telemedicine’ in the ‘search for courses’ field.
|
|
Similar to webinars, our Virtual Office Hours are offered virtually. They are more informal, more interactive, and typically last less than one hour.
April Featured Topic: Broadband Resources
Broadband is the foundation of any successful telehealth program. Join us for an interactive discussion of broadband resources available throughout the United States. We will have a session focused on provider resources and another focused on consumer resources. Register below!
Provider and Organization Broadband Resources
Date: April 9, 2021
Time: 12:00-12:45pm
Hosted by: Becky Sanders and Ally Orwig
Consumer Broadband Resources
Date: April 30, 2021
Time: 12:00pm-12:45pm EST
Location: Videoconferencing
Hosted by: Becky Sanders and Ally Orwig
|
|
UMTRC 2021 Stakeholder Calls
As a grant-funded organization, the goal of the Upper Midwest Telehealth Resource Center (UMTRC) is to provide technical assistance to assist individuals and organizations in our region who are interested in telehealth. One of the ways that we do this is through our quarterly stakeholder calls, where we focus on policy and reimbursement changes for the states in our region: Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio. We invite you to join us for the jam-packed update to the quarterly state of telehealth in our region! These typically occur on the 3rd Wednesday of each quarter (January, April, July, and October). Anyone may register and participate in any of the calls. Check out our events for more information, and to register for each specific call.
Here are the 2021 stakeholder calls dates:
Wednesday, April 21st from 2-3pm EST
Wednesday, July 21st from 2-3pm EST
Wednesday, October 20th from 2-3pm EST
Up Next:
April 21, 2021
2:00-3:00pm EST
Featuring a discussion on policy and reimbursement changes in our region.
|
|
Upcoming In-Person Conferences & Virtual Events
Telegenetics Training Program
The Midwest Genetics Network and the Heartland Genetics Network are collaborating with the Upper Midwest Telehealth Resource Center (UMTRC) to offer an introductory telegenetics training program for genetics providers and genetic counseling students.
The one day virtual workshops for Genetic Counselors and Counseling students will be held on May 10, 2021.
The one day virtual workshops for Physicians will be held on May 11, 2021.
|
|
IRHA Spring Rural Summit
Join the Indiana Rural Health Association on April 8, 2021 for the Spring Rural Summit. This will be a virtual event. We will cover topics ranging from leadership to quality and more with a focus on Critical Access Hospitals, Rural Hospitals, and Rural Health Clinics
Special ticket pricing for IRHA members, Critical Access Hospital employees, and students!
|
|
InROC Virtual Opioid Use Disorder CME
The Indiana Rural Opioid Consortium (InROC) will host a virtual continuing medical education program on April 28, 2021 at 12:00 p.m. EST. We welcome Dr. Michael Wheelis, MD who will be presenting “Opioid Use Disorder Prevention, Treatment, and Management." This program has been approved for AMA Category 1 Credit™ which can be used to help satisfy the IN SEA 225 requirement.
This event will be offered at no cost to attend.
|
|
IRHA Annual Rural Health Conference
IRHA’s Annual Conference brings together physicians, nurses, pharmacists, public health professionals, and other rural health professionals. Practitioners from the field and national experts discuss current topics in public health and rural health. The latest information regarding the start-up and on-going management of rural health care delivery models are presented throughout the Conference.
Exhibitor and Attendee registration is OPEN!
|
|
3rd Annual UMTRC Telehealth Conference
We are excited to hold our 3rd Annual Telehealth Conference in person this summer! The UMTRC is your authority on telehealth adoption, delivery, compliance, and reimbursement, and we are proud to bring together experts and professionals to extend our reach at our annual conference. Join us and enhance your telehealth knowledge!
Exhibitor and attendee registration will open later this month!
Don't miss the announcement; join our mailing list now!
Social and Subscribe
Be sure to connect with the UMTRC on Facebook, LinkedIn, and YouTube for information on where to find us at training sessions, conferences, and the like.
|
UMTRC c/o IRHA
2901 Ohio Boulevard, Suite 240
Terre Haute, IN 47803
855-283-3734 extension 238
[email protected]
This newsletter was made possible by grant numbers G22RH30351 and GA5RH37466 from the Office for Advancement of Telehealth, Health Resource and Services Administration, DHHS. This information or content and conclusions are those of the UMTRC and should not be construed as the official position or policy of, nor should any endorsements be inferred by HRSA, HHS or the U.S. Government.