Charleston, WV (WOAY) – West Virginia’s higher education community is joining the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources (DHHR) State Office of Rural Health in celebrating National Rural Health Day.
The West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission administers several scholarship and loan repayment programs to develop healthcare providers for rural and underserved areas of the state and to support communities where students learn and will eventually practice.
The Commission awards 250 scholarships annually to provide students with education support in exchange for committing to serve rural and underserved communities in the Mountain State.
The Commission also oversees the West Virginia Rural Health Initiative.
The initiative collaborates with the state’s three medical schools dedicated to recruiting and retaining rural providers by providing community-based training for students in various health fields.
DHHR’s Office of Rural Health administers rural hospital support programs and loan repayment programs and provides incentives rural communities can use to attract health care providers to their communities.
The Office of Rural Health also oversees the state’s use of the 3RNET system to recruit healthcare providers to rural communities in West Virginia.
To learn more about the Commission’s rural health care programs and the West Virginia Rural Health Initiative, visit http://www.wvhepc.edu/inside-the-commission/offices-and-affiliates/health-sciences/.
To learn more about DHHR’s Office of Rural Health, please visit https://dhhr.wv.gov/ruralhealth. Â
To learn more about National Rural Health Day, visit https://www.powerofrural.org/.
