SDAHO would like to thank South Dakota Healthcare Financial Management Association (SDHFMA) for the sponsorship for our very first virtual Rural Health Leaders Conference. Considering the situation, we felt it was an overall success with nearly 50 rural health leaders in attendance.
If you were unable to attend, the recordings of the entire conference and each individual session are available to purchase. To learn more and purchase the recordings, click here. 8.7 contact hours are available for licensed nursing home administrators through the recording.
Here’s a snapshot from each session:
Brock Slabach, NRHA – Brock provided a comprehensive overview on the current state of rural health and touched on the vulnerability of rural healthcare related to hospital closures, population, and rural delivery service closures. He shared COVID-19 response updates for the current state and post pandemic. CMS 1135 waivers, CARES Act funding provisions, Paycheck Protection Program, Health Care Enhancement Act and HRSA funding were the main COVID-19 topics.
Nick Smith, Wifli – Reviewed questions to ask and shared specific examples when creating isolation rooms and how to respond with your hospital and senior living design with environmental changes.
Nancy Ruzicka, Ruzicka Consulting – Discussed federal declared disaster regulations and how facilities must have policies and procedures related to the role of the facility when a waiver under Section 1135 is declared by Secretary of HHS. She shared specific waiver examples for hospitals and long-term care facilities.
Blake Gillman, Life Care Services – Provided solutions on how facilities can make changes today to ensure you can meet the health and wellness needs of future residents.
Lauri Dahlberg, Eide Bailly – Lauri covered a wide variety of human resource topics, which included, Fair Labor Standards Act, independent contractors, pay equity, paid leave, FMLA, reasonable accommodations, personnel files, Families First Coronavirus Response Act, and I-9 forms.
Dr. Richard Brynteson, Concordia University professor – Dr. Brynteson shared personal experiences dealing with grief and loss and provided practical solutions and steps on how to deal with stress, change and uncertainty. He posed specific questions to help individuals deal with change and help adapt to a new normal, for example, which thinking habits are unhelpful now.
