AGENDA

8:15 am:   Registration, Exhibits, Breakfast

9:00 am:   Conference Opening

  • Jon-Michael Rosmann, President

9:15 am:   Building Momentum: Iowa’s Rural Health   Transformation Fund in Action

  • Robert Kruse, MD, MPH, FAAFP, State Medical Director, Director, Division of Public Health

Highlighting progress since Iowa’sHealthy Hometowns Rural Health Transformation Programlaunched, this session will share the work underway to strengthen rural health care across the state. The discussion will highlight emerging partnerships among health care organizations, communities, universities, and other stakeholders, as well as early successes in areas such as workforce development, health care access, technology, and innovative models of care. Attendees will gain insight into what has been accomplished thus far and what’s ahead as Iowa continues to build sustainable, connected systems of care for rural communities.

10:15 am:   Networking Break & Exhibit Hall

10:30 am:   Bridging the Digital Divide: Broadband, Technology, and Rural Health

  • Jeff Rose, Director of Special Initiatives, AARP

Reliable broadband access is increasingly essential to health and well-being, connecting rural residents to telehealth services, caregiving resources, social connections, and critical information. Join Jeff Rose of OATS as he explores the intersection of digital access and rural health, highlighting opportunities to improve health outcomes and quality of life through greater connectivity and digital inclusion.

11:30 am:   IRHA Annual Member Meeting and Award Presentations

12:15 pm:   Lunch and Exhibit Hall

1:00 pm:     Afternoon Break Out Session 1

  • The Missing Piece of Healthy Aging: Oral Health and the I-Smile Silver Program – Oral health is essential to healthy aging, yet it is often overlooked. This session highlights the connection between oral health and overall well-being, explores barriers older adults face in accessing care, and shares how the I-Smile Silver Program helps connect older Iowans to needed oral health services and resources.
  • Tackling Cancer in Iowa’s Rural Communities – This session will focus on ongoing and new initiatives to address Iowa’s high rates of cancer. Participants will hear from the 99 Counties Project on their efforts to share data and resources to address cancer across all 99 counties, the Iowa Environmental Council on their collaborrative efforts to assess the impact of the environment on cancer in Iowa, and the newly launched Integrated Network for Science, Information, and Geospatial Health Tracking (INSIGHT), a statewide initiative that will produce scientific evidence needed to understand how environmental exposures affect human health.
  • Addressing Maternal Health Access to Care Challenges in Rural Iowa – Iowa continues to experience maternal health access challenges. This session will focus on the impact of maternal health workforce challenges and innovative initiatives to mitigate these challenges across rural Iowa.

1:45 pm:     Break

2:00 pm:     Afternoon Break Out Session 2

  • Navigating Dementia Care: How the GUIDE Model Supports Rural Families – The GUIDE Model is transforming dementia care by helping families access coordinated support, caregiver resources, and personalized care planning. Learn how this new approach can help rural families navigate the challenges of dementia with greater confidence and support.
  • Engaging Dentists to Improve HPV Vaccination in Rural Iowa – Iowa has one of the highest rates of orophayngeal cancers in the United States, which could be mitigated by improving HPV vaccination rates. A HPV vaccination message from a dental professional can reinforce a message about the vaccine from a health care provider—or act as a cue to approach a health care provider about receiving the vaccine.Participants will hear from the University of Iowa Prevention Research Center for Rural Health’s Cancer Prevention and Control Research Network team and their collaboration with Iowa Immunizes to implement Educate, Recommend, Refer, an interactive, educational intervention in rural dental practices aimed at providing strong HPV vaccination recommendations.
  • Innovations to Help Iowa’s Maternal Health Crisis – Learn how innovative, evidence-based approaches, including the Count the Kicks program, are helping improve maternal and infant health outcomes across Iowa by increasing awareness, education, and community support.

2:45 pm:     Networking Break & Exhibit Hall

3:00 pm:     Closing Comments

3:15 pm:     Networking and Exhibit Hall

4:00 pm:  Conference End