Sep 07, 2016
EMS Leaders Speak
by Allee Mead
There have been many recent changes in healthcare delivery, some by design and some as unintended consequences of a changing economy and government policies. Such shifts, as well as the anticipation of others that are looming, have placed burdens on many rural regions' healthcare systems, and emergency medical services are no exception.
With these challenges come potential opportunities. Our panel – made up of state, regional, and national EMS experts – discusses potential problems, along with opportunities such as community paramedicine and telehealth, as they explore answers to this question:
"What do the recent changes to – and the transformation of – rural healthcare delivery mean for EMS access?"
Out on the
Spokes: Mitigating the Impact of Rural Healthcare
Transformation
by Kevin McGinnis,
Program Manager, National Association of State EMS
Officials
Expecting More
Services for Less Compensation
by Diane Calmus, Government Affairs and Policy
Manager, National Rural Health Association
Being
Forward-Thinking as EMS Agencies Plan for the
Future
by Don Wood, Co-chair of the
Joint Committee on Rural EMS Care (JCREC) and Director of
the Utah Office of Primary Care and Rural Health
Opportunities to
Provide Better Healthcare and Better
Value
by Tom Nehring, Co-chair of the JCREC and Division
Director at the North Dakota Department of Health,
Division of EMS and Trauma
Filling Gaps
and Avoiding Duplication: Community Paramedics and
Ambulance Services
by Gary Wingrove,
President of The Paramedic Foundation
Allee Mead is a web writer for the Rural Health Information Hub. She has written on important rural issues, including maternal mortality and farmers' mental health, and has presented nationally on RHIhub's opioid resources. Originally from rural North Dakota, she has a master's degree in English. Full Biography
View all articles by Allee Mead