FEATURE
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Life Care Specialist Program Debuts in Rural Georgia Hospitals
| Mountain Lakes Memorial Hospital Life Care Specialist Mandy Kuntz converses with Amy Upchurch, RN. | |
The Georgia Rural Health Innovation Center (GRHIC), Mercer University School of Medicine (MUSM), and the CWC Alliance are working together to combat the opioid epidemic affecting rural communities in Georgia. With opioid overdose deaths rising, particularly in rural areas, the partnership is implementing the Life Care Specialist (LCS) pilot program in rural communities.
The LCS program, previously successful at Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta, has now officially debuted in two rural hospitals: Mountain Lakes Medical Center in Clayton and Stephens County Hospital in Toccoa.
One individual making a profound impact as a Life Care Specialist is Mandy Kuntz, a Rabun County native.
Kuntz was cleaning homes for a living while completing her bachelor’s degree when she met Cammie Wolf Rice, the founder of CWC. Rice’s son and namesake of CWC, Christopher Wolf, lost his 14-year battle with opioid dependency due to chronic pain. “I am in recovery myself,” said Kuntz. She and Rice instantly connected over her personal addiction recovery journey, now eight years and counting. Kuntz remembered, “Cammie said, ‘You can be a Life Care Specialist, this new role that I’ve got.’ I said, ‘I’m ready!’”
It would be three years from their initial conversation before the LCS position would be ready for installment at Mountain Lakes Medical Center. In the meantime, Kuntz graduated from college and enrolled in Liberty University’s online master’s program in clinical mental health counseling.
Just ahead of her appointment as an LCS, Kuntz completed rigorous training, which included a didactic curriculum of online learning modules about the history, physiology, and treatment of addiction along with exposure to practicums at Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta. In March, she officially started her role at Mountain Lakes.
“It is something different. It is encouraging,” said Kuntz. “There are times where I can’t help people, and I really want to, but I am able to sit with them and hear about their pain.”
A Life Care Specialist is an important part of the care team for patients dealing with traumatic injuries, diseases, post-surgery recovery — all scenarios that involve significant pain and that can lead to one’s dependency on opioids.
Rice said, “Many times addiction starts with one prescription, and it starts in the hospital.” According to research conducted through the LCS program at Grady, many patients may not be aware that their prescription is an opioid and the risks associated with those medications.
Life Care Specialists, like Kuntz, provide direct intervention, education, support and a pain management plan to individuals while they are being treated for acute injury or surgery. They also work with individuals who come to the hospital with pain medication dependency to wean off of the medication.
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Left: MUSM Associate Professor and Interim Chair of Community Medicine Brad Lian, PhD, MUSM Dean Jean Sumner, MD, FACP, and Ben West, PhD. Right: Chris Scoggins, DrPH, and wife, Kathryn. | |
GRHIC Staff Notables
We congratulate Ben West, PhD, a GRHIC research assistant, and Chris Scoggins, DrPH, director of special programs, for successfully completing their respective doctoral programs.
Dr. West earned his PhD in rural health sciences from Mercer University School of Medicine (MUSM).
Dr. Scoggins was awarded his Doctor of Public Health degree from Mercer University College of Health Professions.
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GRHIC's Upcoming Maternal Health Symposium to Focus on the Maternal Health Care Team
The third-annual Maternal Health Symposium will be held on Thursday, June 20, 2024. This year’s general topic and theme is The Maternal Health Care Team. It will be held in the Presidents Dining Room on Mercer University's Macon Campus.
The symposium was established in response to the high rates of maternal mortality in Georgia, especially in rural communities across the state. Through this event, the Georgia Rural Health Innovation Center works to foster positive change and stimulate an improvement in the maternal mortality rates.
The symposium provides a forum that offers a valuable and inclusive learning experience. While topics about difficult and sobering issues related to maternal mortality will be explored, presentations are delivered with a positive perspective, focusing on what works and what makes a difference in outcomes.
Maternal Health Symposium topics include:
- The Roles and Interactions of the Maternal Health Care Team
- Maternal Mortality in Rural Georgia
- The Invitro Fertilization Journey
- Practicing Care: Compassion, Attitude, Resiliency, Empathy
- Postpartum Concerns, Resources and Support
- Maternal-Fetal Medicine
We welcome a varied audience to include all involved in maternal health care: physicians, providers, nurses, students, breast-feeding specialists, health care advocates, mental health professionals, doulas, family members, community health care workers, and anyone with a particular interest in maternal health.
CME and CNE credits will be offered for the lectures presented.
The program is from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., with registration and breakfast beginning at 8 a.m. There is no cost to attend.
The event will not be live-streamed but will be recorded and available for viewing for those who cannot attend.
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Faith in Rural Health Summit
GRHIC, along with Mercer University School of Medicine and McAfee School of Theology, will host a Faith in Rural Health Summit on Friday, October 4, 2024 on Mercer’s Macon campus. This free, day-long event will explore the theme “Improving Health in Rural Georgia Through Faith-Health Care Collaborations.” The summit will bring together physicians, health care providers, and faith leaders from throughout the state to showcase the effective collaborations that these groups have initiated to address the pressing health care challenges faced by their rural communities. The summit participants will hear collaborative stories from noted rural physicians and ministers, consider research findings, hear stories from FIRH’s partners around the state, and engage in group dialogue around appropriately and holistically addressing spiritual needs in the clinical space and physical needs in the church.
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Health Fair Brings Free Resources and Screenings to Washington County Residents | |
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by Kayla Stroud, Communications and Events Specialist
On April 27, Washington County hosted a free health fair for the local community in Sandersville. We welcomed 75 attendees and more than 20 vendors participated in the event's unique blend of interactive, kid-friendly health-related activities, health education, and screenings.
The collaborative event was organized by Representative Mack Jackson with the help of Washington County Regional Hospital, Washington County EMC, and the Georgia Rural Health Innovation Center. "I started having these health fairs through Dr. Sumner (dean of Mercer University School of Medicine) and Mercer a few years ago," said Rep. Jackson. "I'm on the health committee with the General Assembly, and health care is one of the main issues for the House Rural Development Council. I’m interested in all Georgians having access to quality health care, and Mercer and GRHIC have been instrumental in helping achieve that goal."
Rep. Jackson said the event was successful in showcasing how vital maintaining one's health is and showed the importance of taking advantage of the free resources provided for his community. "I had some testing done here, and I look forward to receiving my results," he said. The benefit of these fairs is that they ensure citizens can do the same by coming out. Some may not have primary care physicians and don't have the opportunity to have check-ups or get their blood work done. But making these health fairs easily accessible can also incentivize them to encourage their family members and friends to stop by."
Some fair highlights included a Teddy Bear Clinic, where children engaged with GRHIC staff while their stuffed companions underwent physical evaluations; a pig lung demonstration that showed the harmful effects of smoking; a blood draw station that tested for cholesterol and glucose; breast care information about the importance of mammograms and early detections; and a blood pressure station led by Mercer University medical student and Sandersville native Bailey Vickers. Food trucks and a live DJ rounded out the event.
Rep. Jackson is already looking ahead to future events and expanding the types of vendors, such as a dental mobile unit. He recognizes that health care is an essential issue for rural communities, and the event served as a testament to the community's interest in and willingness to collaborate. He said, "When you bring the resources directly to them, they are more apt to come out and make themselves available."
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Rural Pediatric Continuing Education Conference | |
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The Georgia Rural Health Innovation Center, along with Mercer University School of Medicine and Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, hosted the second KidsABC Rural Pediatric Continuing Education Conference on May 17 at Mercer University’s Macon campus. More than 70 physicians, nurses, public health professionals, and other health care practitioners gathered to network with and to learn from subject matter experts on timely pediatric health topics.
This year’s conference included discussions about telehealth subspecialty care, the importance of hearing evaluations, and pediatric endocrinology. Conference attendees visited with the multiple exhibitors representing public health agencies, community-based organizations, and pediatric health services, including mobile units. The conference concluded with an interprofessional education workshop, where attendees reflected on topic presentations and discussed practical applications for their communities.
The conference recording will be available for replay on GRHIC's YouTube in the coming weeks.
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Rural Hospital Emergency Department Collaborative
The Rural Hospital Emergency Department Collaborative continued to make progress with staff training and the Pediatric Readiness checklist for cohorts 1 and 2. Several hospitals are nearing their celebrations as we honor them for their dedication in the KidsABC program. Stay tuned for additional information about hospital celebrations coming soon. We are happy to announce that we have added Bleckley Memorial to Cohort 2 for 2024. The team will be making site visits to hospitals in the coming months. The simulation team continues to meet weekly to work on developing mobile education, which we plan to launch in 2025.
Rural Pediatrician Support Collaborative
On-site visits to all newly selected pediatric providers for Cohort 2 are currently in process, and the official announcement is coming soon. Online scheduling of telehealth appointments with subspecialists began on May 2 and our rural pediatric providers are grateful for the opportunity to provide this resource to their patients. We are working on finalizing the rural telehealth workflow prior to the first telehealth subspecialty visits in June. We are excited to introduce this new resource to our rural communities.
Rural Pediatric Mental Health Collaborative
The Rural Pediatric Mental Health Collaborative’s mental health and wellness screening pilot was offered to 12 schools, in three school systems, in two rural counties. The screening pilot was completed during the 2023-2024 academic year. The preliminary findings have been analyzed and presented to the interdisciplinary Preventive and Interventional Screening and Advisory Committee. The Committee members are a group of Counselors, Psychiatrists, Psychologists, Educators, School System Administrators, Public Health Professionals and Child Advocates. They will provide guidance on programs, trainings and activities to enrich and enhance the mental health and well-being of the school-age students, the school systems, and the communities at large. These programs, trainings and activities will be implemented in academic year 2024-2025. Planning is underway to expand screening to two more school systems next year.
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Training and News for Rural Pediatric Health Care Providers
Rural Pediatric News is published bimonthly and highlights training and continuing medical education options, recommended reading, physician spotlights, seasonal health and wellness information to share with patients, and more.
The Pediatric Advanced Speakers Series is a free monthly training series for providers to earn CME credits, offered by Mercer University School of Medicine, through one-hour virtual training sessions with subject matter experts in a variety of topics. PASS includes peer-led rural pediatric patient case studies and an in-person continuing education conference.
If you are a rural pediatric provider, please click to register for trainings and subscribe to Rural Pediatric News.
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2024 Ongoing Center Initiatives | |
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Maternal Health Improvement
All Rural Counties
Kedrick Williams
Maternal Health Observership
All Rural Counties
Kedrick Williams
Maternal Health Symposium
All Rural Counties
Joan Anderson
Community Health Reporter
All Rural Counties
Kedrick Williams, Harvey Moody
Clinical Ethics ECHO
All Rural Counties
Chris Scoggins, Samantha Johnson
Opioid Misuse Prevention Project
Rural Hospitals
Glenda Grant
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ASIST Suicide Training
All Rural Counties
Travis Crafter
Community Resiliency
Model (CRM)
All Rural Counties
Joan Anderson, Travis Crafter
Mental Health First Aid
All Rural Counties
Kedrick Williams,
Glenda Grant
Pediatric Mental Health Initiative
Ben Hill, Jefferson, Washington
Joan Anderson
Barber/Beauty Shop Project
Randolph County
Harvey Moody
Rural Medicine Pathways Events
All Rural Counties
Glenda Grant
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QPR (Question, Persuade, Refer) Gatekeeper Training for Suicide Prevention
All Rural Counties
Joan Anderson
Faith in Rural Health
Berrien, Putnam, Toombs/Montgomery
Paul Byrd
Health Fairs
Rural Partners
Amanda Livingston
Georgia Agricultural Wellness Alliance
All Counties
John McElveen
Continuing Medical Education and Continuing Nursing Education Training
Harvey Moody
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The Georgia Rural Health Innovation Center works with rural partners to enhance health education through health fairs.
We encourage these community members to join us:
Harris County | July 13 | 9 a.m.–Noon
Co-Host: Harris County School District
Location: Harris County Community Center, 7509 GA-116, Hamilton, GA 31811
Are you a vendor wanting to participate in a health fair?
Submit the application below.
BECOME A VENDOR
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ABOUT THE CENTER
In 2018, Georgia lawmakers dedicated special funds to establish a new Rural Health Innovation Center tasked with confronting the complex health care challenges and wellness disparities facing rural communities. Mercer University School of Medicine (MUSM) was awarded the grant funds in 2019 and formally established the Georgia Rural Health Innovation Center on its Macon campus. MUSM boasts a longstanding commitment to serving rural Georgia’s health needs, with a mission to educate physicians dedicated to tackling the health challenges in rural Georgia. The Rural Health Innovation Center serves as a critical resource to rural communities to improve access and effectiveness of health care by offering research, collaboration, and training opportunities.
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