The Office of Rural and Underserved Programs works in partnership with rural and underserved communities to increase access to health care, reduce health disparities and promote health in rural and underserved communities. Here are some of the ways we work in our communities.
We participate in community service activities in the areas surrounding each of our HCOM campuses.
In Athens, this year the ORUP collaborated with the Ohio Health O’Bleness Family Medicine Residency Program to put together period products to give away to patients as well as to place in blessing boxes across Athens County. Period poverty refers to inadequate access to menstrual products and menstrual health education due to financial constraints or societal stigma. Nearly 1 in 4 students struggle to afford period products in the United States leading to 44% of teens reporting stress and embarrassment due to the lack of access to period products.
Community Health Assessment
The Office of Rural and Underserved Programs works with the Athens City-County Health Department on numerous projects including the 2019 Athens Community Needs Assessment and Community Health Improvement Plan. Sharon Casapulla, Ed.D., M.P.H., developed, distributed and summarized the results of the 2019 Athens community survey, one of the primary data collection tools in the Community Health Assessment. The CHA process gathers primary and secondary data at the community level to identify areas of concern related to health. The results are shared with community stakeholders who are asked to prioritize these concerns. The priorities inform the development of the local Community Health Improvement Plan or CHIP.
Community-Based Health Education
In 2018, in collaboration with the staff of the Athens City-County Health Department, Dr. Casapulla worked with faculty from the OHIO College of Health Sciences and Professions and a RUSP student to develop, implement and evaluate a health education intervention with the clients of the ACCHD Harm Reduction program. The team wrote and received a $10,000 community engagement grant from the Infectious and Tropical Disease Institute at the Heritage College to support the project.