Category Archive

Marybeth Peña is the Nurse Program Specialist for the Florida Department of Health in Marin County. She is a registered nurse and a certified diabetes educator, and was recognized at the 2017 Rural Health Symposium for the work that she does with underserved populations. Currently, she oversees “The Program for Chronic Disease,” a preventative initiative designed to fight chronic conditions … Read More

John Gill serves as President of the National Association of Rural Health Clinics. He received the Ron Nelson Award in 2014, presented by his peers; in honor of the positive impact John’s efforts have on the lives of the community that he serves. In this episode, John discusses the importance of connecting with the community, understanding the issues they face … Read More

This week’s guest is Carolyn Bruce, Chief Executive Officer of Western Healthcare Alliance and Healthcare Management and the Executive Director for the California Critical Access Hospital Network, and Network to Network Strategies.   A native of San Diego, CA, Carolyn started her career in healthcare in 1989 after attending San Diego State University and earning a Master of Business Administration Degree … Read More

Today’s guest is Dr. Elisha Yaghmai, CEO of FreeState Healthcare, formerly known as Vigilias Telehealth. Born in California, Dr. Yaghmai has lived in every major region of the United States, and logged time in Africa and Asia. He went into medicine to change the world, but found medicine changed him instead. FreeState Healthcare is his way of fighting back by … Read More

In this week’s episode of Rural Health Leadership Radio, we’re having a conversation with Dave Pearson, President & CEO of the Texas Organization of Rural & Community Hospitals, also known as TORCH. TORCH is a professional association whose members consist of acute care hospitals with under 150 beds. “…exciting things going on here and a lot of it is pointed … Read More

In this episode of Rural Health Leadership Radio, we’re having a conversation with Lynn Barr, CEO of Caravan Health.  Lynn is an energetic entrepreneur with thirty years of experience in healthcare, where she has shepherded four start-ups and twelve medical inventions through research, the FDA and on to worldwide markets. Through Caravan Health, Lynn is a recognized leader in the development … Read More

The 2017 TORCH Annual Conference & Trade Show (TORCH = Texas Organization for Rural and Community Hospitals) was held in Dallas, TX, April 18 – 20.  The title of the meeting was New Directions in Rural Healthcare. “The environment for rural health, as you know, is very challenging.  We have a lot of issues and things we need to think … Read More

Bill Jolley is Vice President for Rural Health Issues for the Tennessee Hospital Association (THA). In this role, Bill is responsible for the development and implementation of the Medicare Rural Hospital Flexibility Program and for expanding services, such as technical assistance and training, to rural hospitals. He has won several awards, including the National Rural Health Association’s Rural Quality Award … Read More

John Barnas serves as the Executive Director of the Michigan Center for Rural Health (MCRH), a non-profit organization affiliated with Michigan State University. He has held this role since February of 2000. He also serves on the National Rural Health Association Government Affairs Committee and Medicaid Task Force. In his current role as Executive Director of MCRH, John is responsible … Read More

Chris Clayton appeared as a guest on Meet the Press with Chuck Todd after the last presidential election to help explain how Donald Trump became the 45th President of the United States of America.  Rural America made the difference.  Chris is the Policy Editor and Interim Markets Editor for DTN/The Progressive Farmer, where he has worked since 2005. He has … Read More