NACCHO’s Rural and Frontier Health Initiatives:

1. Building Workforce Capacity of Rural and Frontier Local Health Departments to Respond to COVID-19

This is a two-year project focused on increasing the workforce capacity of local health departments that serve rural/frontier jurisdictions to effectively respond to, recover from, and build community resiliency related to the COVID pandemic and other public health emergencies.

The focus of the training and technical assistance will be on:

• Emergency and Administrative Planning
• Communications
• Workforce Resilience
• Mental Health & Well-Being
• Health Equity

2. Rural Local Health Department Partnership in Healthcare Associated Infections (HAI), Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR), and Antimicrobial Stewardship (AMS)

In April 2022, NACCHO conducted an exploratory survey of Rural, Frontier, and Small LHDs to understand their engagement in HAI, AMR and/or AMS activities or initiatives. Forty-four (44) health departments answered the call and responded to the exploratory online survey.

3. Local Health Departments (LHDs) Informing the Evolution of Public Health Emergency Preparedness (PHEP)

The purpose of this project is to increase the preparedness and response capacity of LHDs that serve rural and frontier jurisdictions to effectively respond to, recover from, and build community resiliency related to the COVID pandemic and future public health emergencies.

Starting in 2023, NACCHO will recruit Public Health Emergency Preparedness (PHEP) Coordinators/Staff from rural local health departments (LHDs) to take part in a rural PHEP Subject Matter Expert (SME) Workgroup and regional listening sessions.

In these meetings, participants will review the current PHEP capabilities through the lens of a rural LHD to identify challenges faced meeting the PHEP capabilities given the current resources.

Interested in joining? Opportunities for recruitment will be posted in early 2023.

Partner Organizations

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) – Rural Health
• Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP) - FORHP advises the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services about health care issues affecting rural communities.
• Rural Health Information (RHI) Hub- The RHIhub is a clearinghouse of information on rural health issues. It also provides current resources on rural health care and population health including toolkits and models for programs that work in rural communities.
• Rural Health Research Gateway- The Rural Health Research Gateway provides access to research conducted by the Rural Health Research Centers, including rural health research products and journal articles.
• National Center for Farmworker Health- NCFH provides information services, training and technical assistance, and a variety of products to community and migrant health centers nationwide, as well as organizations, universities, researchers, and individuals involved in farmworker health.

NACCHO's initiative aimed at building and fostering a community of local public health officials and partners with a common interest and expertise in rural health issues; and to develop an environment for mutual exchange of knowledge and experience.

Past Topics include:

• Rural Health Needs Assessment
• Mental Health
• Data and GIS Needs in Rural Communities to Promote Health Equity
• Workforce Mental Health Strategies and Situation Reporting

If you would like to be added to the mailing list for upcoming Rural Café sessions, please contact Victoria Freire at [email protected]

If you are interested in working with other rural health departments to share best practices and lessons learned, develop recommendations and tools to strengthen the public health preparedness capacity of your department, email NACCHO’s Preparedness Team with a description of your jurisdiction and why you want to join the workgroup.

Rural local health department grantees for the "Building Workforce Capacity of Rural and Frontier Local Health Departments to Respond to COVID-19" project, year 1.