The updated dashboard details and consolidates rural health data to help rural healthcare leaders, State Offices of Rural Health, and policymakers understand constituent demographics
Stroudwater Associates, the nation’s leading source for strategic, operational, financial, quality, and clinical strategy for rural and community healthcare, recently unveiled its updated State & Congressional District Profiles Dashboard.
The Profiles, built in partnership with the National Rural Health Association (NRHA) and the National Organization of State Offices of Rural Health (NOSORH), is an integrated data visualization dashboard that shares information about healthcare infrastructure, workforce, outcomes, and health factors within each state and congressional district. The updated dashboard now includes prevention measures, shortage areas, disability measures, and other relevant indicators.
“Grassroots lobbying holds immense power in influencing rural policy,” emphasized Carrie Cochran-McClain, DrPH, Chief Policy Officer of NRHA. “The profiles will help to provide critical baseline information on the status of healthcare access and health outcomes in rural communities.”
“Historically, policymakers crafted rural healthcare policies without a comprehensive understanding of its landscape,” added Jeff Sommer, MPP, Managing Partner of Stroudwater. “In collaboration with NRHA and NOSORH, we have improved the tool to help State Offices of Rural Health, policymakers, and hospital leadership positively impact rural healthcare in the way each community needs it most.”
Stroudwater will continue adding new metrics and capabilities following the NRHA Policy Institute in February to expand the impact and enhance the utility of the rural healthcare Profiles.
The updates to the Profiles dashboard will enhance support for the State Offices of Rural Health in writing state grants. The dashboard will also provide extra support for the offices planning future grant and technical assistance programs, such as the Flex program for Critical Access Hospitals in each state.
“Every state has a rural health plan with goals they are trying to achieve. State Offices will now be able to utilize the data to help allocate funds appropriately and achieve their state’s goals,” says Tonne McCoy, Technical Assistance Director of NOSORH.
“Before the tool, State Offices of Rural Health lacked access to comprehensive data and data visualizations specific to their state,” added Tammy Norville, CEO of NOSORH. “With the new updates, State Offices gain deeper insights into their state demographics, which will help them make more informed recommendations to individual hospitals to improve rural healthcare.”
The updated State & Congressional District Profiles Dashboard is now available to the public through this link.
