This week has been bustling for Northwest AHEC and the Office of Rural Health (ORH), with three site visits to the State Designated Rural Health Centers! Our partnership with SDRHC and ORH ensures top-notch primary healthcare for all residents in their communities. At NWAHEC, we're delighted to collaborate with these organizations, which truly strive to address the needs of their communities. A big thanks to Grace Clinic in Elkin, Surry Medical Ministries in Mt Airy and Hugh Chatham in Ronda and of course, working with the ORH team is always a pleasure.

We have initiated discussions with ORH and the clinics to cover a range of topics including clinical data review, conducting needs assessments, planning strategies, and organizing upcoming events. The value we place on our partnership with ORH and our practices is immeasurable.

 Team members involved in this collaboration include:

• Betty Taylor, Executive Director, Grace Clinic
• Sharon Kallan, RN, Director of Quality and Compliance, Grace Clinic
• LeeAnna, RN, Grace Clinic
• Justin Kearley, Operations Specialist, NC Office of Rural Health
• Kim McNeil, Operations Specialist, NC Office of Rural Health
• Trenesse Michael, Operations Specialist, NC Office of Rural Health
• Medina Wilson, Senior Quality Improvement Specialist, NWAHEC
• Nancy Dixon, Executive Director of Surry Medical Ministries
• Krissy Hensley, Operations Manager, Hugh Chatham Hospital
• Julie Billings, RN, with Hugh Chatham Hospital
• Sebastian Gimenez, MD, with Office of Rural Health 

"Team ORH has been putting in miles the past few weeks to meet with our State Designated Rural Health Centers! 🚙 SDRHCs offer high quality primary health care services to all residents - regardless of their ability to pay. ❤️ This week we heard firsthand about these efforts including establishing new access points for healthcare, employing community health workers to visit patients in their homes, collaborations to address social drivers of health and more! Huge thank you to our friends at NC AHEC for their partnership! Practice Support team ROCKS 🤘"

You can learn more about SDRHCs here: https://www.ncdhhs.gov/divisions/office-rural-health/office-rural-health-programs/rural-health-operations