Arkansas Rural Health Partnership launches training academy

The Arkansas Rural Health Partnership (ARHP) launched the Arkansas Rural Health Academy to meet “critical, in-demand” training needs of rural health member organizations across the state.

The Arkansas Rural Health Partnership is a non-profit healthcare organization headquartered in Lake Village, Ark. ARHP members include 19 rural hospitals, two federally qualified health centers, and three medical teaching institutions.

“We are thrilled to pioneer new ways to meet unique challenges facing our rural residents while also supporting the rural healthcare organizations that serve our communities. The Academy looks forward to continually steering innovation, collaboration, and creativity to best serve rural Arkansas,” stated Mellie Boagni, ARHP founder, president, and CEO.

For years, ARHP members say they have been faced with the conundrum of filling staff vacancies while training programs are few and far between. In rural communities, it is increasingly common to find needed training programs shuttering due to the inability to meet minimum class size requirements. Meanwhile, health workforce gaps at rural health organizations throughout the state continue to grow.

The Arkansas Rural Health Partnership recently designed a training approach while addressing common rural barriers, such as local availability of training, distance to training, cost, and time constraints.

The academy utilizes existing infrastructure, such as a workforce mobile unit, member facilities, staff, and telehealth equipment to bring targeted training to rural residents. With this innovative model, a rural resident can simply go to their nearest ARHP member site and access live, in-person and/or distance learning training courses.

Academy offerings will adapt to the needs of member organizations, it said. The new, state-approved training center provides a diverse range of nationally recognized training opportunities for laypersons and healthcare professionals of all skill levels and career lengths.

The academy provides training for laypersons and/or health professionals, certification training for clinical & emergency medical service providers, and certificate and degree-path training programs. The academy works in tandem with local educational institutions to ensure that training offerings do not duplicate or replace existing training programs. Whenever possible, the academy partners with local community colleges to support efforts.

For more information about the Arkansas Rural Health Academy, visit this link.