RENSSELAER, Indiana - Franciscan Health Rensselaer representatives attended a summit hosted by Indiana Rural Health Association on November 21, 2019. The summit was held with healthcare employees from across Indiana representing rural healthcare. Speakers at the summit include, Douglas O'Brien, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Regional V. director; David Nialsena, director, Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services chief medical officer; Brock Slabach, senior vice president of the National Rural Health Association and keynote speaker Brian Lee, founder and CEO of Custom Learning Systems Group.

A fifth of the nation's rural hospitals are nearing collapse, according to North Carolina's Sheps Center for Health Services Research, and 2019 is on pace to record the highest number of closings ever. With rural hospital closures at a crisis point, finding the pathway back to growth has never been more urgent.

"The day was a reminder of the unique healthcare needs and challenges facing rural communities, including our own," says Carlos Vasquez, Vice President and COO of Franciscan Health Rensselaer. "Jasper County is a wonderful rural community that is a great place to live and work and we will continue to provide the best quality of healthcare in this community."

The Indiana Rural Health Association (IRHA) was organized in 1997 and their mission is to work to improve the health of all Hoosiers in rural settings.



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