Respectful, patient-centered communication can play a huge role in improving health outcomes and helping eliminate health disparities.

In today’s episode hosted by Movement Is Life’s Conchita Burpee, we explore the critical elements of effective, patient-centered communication. Our guests:

• Dr. Mauvareen Beverley, an executive-level physician with 20 years of experience advocating for improving patient engagement and cultural competency and the author of the book, “Nine Simple Solutions to Achieve Health Equity: A Guide for Healthcare Professionals and Patients”
• Dr. Janet Austin, the founder of JSA Chronic Disease Foundation, a national nonprofit aimed at providing resources and support to help people who experience pain due to chronic diseases have a better life.

Beverley says effective doctor-patient communication starts with heightened human value for each patient, regardless of their background or circumstances: “Everybody talks about being respectful and this and that, but if you don't value me, you think respect is going to come into your mind or your brain?”

Austin shares her personal experience as a lifelong chronic disease patient in explaining how small acts of kindness from healthcare providers can go a long way.

“I was having a really rough time just a few months ago, and of course, I'm there to talk with [my internal medicine doctor], and I'm crying,” Austin says. “She actually said, ‘Janet, I'm going to go ahead and book you to come back to see me in three months, I'm just going to make time for me to listen.’ And I just… I left so optimistic because someone said that they wanted to listen.”

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When it comes to self-care, many people think of taking a break due to exhaustion or burnout. But the acts of self-care that make a real difference go beyond self-soothing, says Ariel Belgrave, an award-winning health and fitness expert, wellness consultant, and the founder of Gym Hooky.

Belgrave challenges people to consider self-care as an investment in their future selves.

“The mindset shift I challenge folks to have is: thinking about the future version of you,” Belgrave says. “...The reality is: Taking care of yourself now could be the difference between your independence and being in a nursing home.”

This week on the Health Disparities podcast, we revisit a conversation between host Dr. Tamara Huff and Ariel Belgrave debunk self-care myths and explore alternative approaches to prioritizing yourself using the P.A.U.S.E. method.

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Over the past two decades, nearly 200 rural hospitals have closed, resulting in millions of Americans losing access to an emergency room, inpatient care, and other hospital services. And today, more than 700 rural hospitals in the U.S. – or approximately 1 in 3 – are at risk of closing due to financial problems, according to a report from the nonprofit Center for Healthcare Quality and Payment Reform.

All this comes at a time when rural health disparities are rampant. In the final episode of our rural health series, we consider solutions: What does it take to prevent rural hospital closures? What evidence-based solutions can policymakers consider to ensure all Americans have access to critical health services, regardless of where they live?

Health Disparities podcast host Bill Finerfrock speaks with Harold Miller, president and CEO of the Center for Healthcare, Quality and Payment Reform and adjunct professor of public policy and management at Carnegie Mellon University.

Miller says many people assume that when a rural community loses a hospital, it’s one of several options, when in reality, “in many small rural communities, the hospital is the only place to get any kind of health care. It is the only place where, not only where there is an emergency department, but because there's no urgent care facility in the community, there's no other place to get a lab test, there may not even be primary care physicians in the community.”

When it comes to policy considerations to prevent rural hospital closures, Miller says there need to be a greater emphasis on the role private health insurance plans play in putting hospitals at risk.

“The myth, unfortunately, is that the problem of rural hospital payment is all about Medicare and Medicaid, and that has led people to focus, I believe, inappropriately and excessively, on Medicare and Medicaid,” he says, “when what we have found is that the biggest problem for most rural hospitals is private insurance plans who don't pay the rural hospital even as much, in many cases, as Medicare or Medicaid does. … We need to start thinking about how to solve the real problems and to solve them now, rather than waiting until the hospital is faced with closure.”

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In our latest podcast series, we’re taking a deep dive on rural health, going beyond the common tropes about rural America – the older, sicker, poorer narrative – and checking in with folks on the ground who are excited to do the work of promoting equitable health outcomes for rural Americans.

Today, Health Disparities podcast host Sarah Hohman talks with two rural health providers:

• Russell Wimmer is a physician associate practicing in a single provider clinic in the small rural town of Brownsville, Oregon.
• Dr. Caylor Johnson is a Family Medicine Physician with Medical Specialists, Inc., in Waynesboro, Georgia.

Johnson explains some of the unique challenges facing rural communities, which are incredibly diverse.

“In my county alone, I have multiple communities, and they each have their own challenges, their own culture, their own history and beliefs,” Johnson says. “And that all comes to the table when they come to the doctor, and I have to be prepared for that.”

Wimmer also shares what he loves about providing care in his rural community.

“When you walk around, people talk to you and you know them personally, and they know you,” Wimmer said. “They're not ignorant to the fact that you're working with limited resources. They know that they're remote, they know that it's hard for you to sometimes help them with what they need. But the fact that you're there with them every day is not lost on them. They appreciate everything that you've done. They know that you're what they've got.”

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When we consider what it takes to improve the health of rural Americans and address rural health disparities, there's no one size fits all solution. Because, as the saying goes, if you’ve seen one rural community, you’ve seen one rural community.

In our latest podcast series, we are digging into rural health: the challenges, and the opportunities. We’re highlighting the diversity of rural communities and addressing common misconceptions..

In today’s episode, Health Disparities podcast host Sarah Hohman checks in with three people who work in rural hospital leadership and administration, doing incredibly important work, often with limited resources:

• Michael Calhoun, Chief Executive Officer/Executive Director for Citizens Memorial Healthcare, an integrated healthcare system serving over 130,000 residents in southwest Missouri.
• Mandy Shelast, the President of Marshfield Clinic Health System’s Michigan and Southern Regions, and the President of the National Association of Rural Health Clinics.
• Dr. John Bartlett, a practicing primary care physician and the Vice President of Medical Affairs for the Michigan Region of Marshfield Clinic.

Some of the biggest challenges are related to the health care workforce and staffing, in particular for specialty care.

“If we lose a chemo nurse in a town of 10,000 there's not five other ones looking for that job,” Bartlett says.

“What I'm concerned about is just our aging population and how we're going to be able to train a workforce enough to be able to care for all the people that need it, that's a real concern,” Calhoun says.

All three guests addressed common misconceptions about rural America, and emphasized the benefits of rural, including a slower pace of life and having providers who are passionate about the mission of providing excellent, personalized health care.

“The patients that we care for are our friends and our family and our community members,” Shelast says. “We take care of them on the very best days of their life — maybe when they're welcoming a life into the world — and on the worst days, when they're having a medical emergency or they've received a terminal diagnosis, and it is just such a great experience to be able to go up to that person and say, 'I'm here for you.’”

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People in rural areas have higher rates of certain chronic conditions and disabilities and can expect to live a couple years shorter, on average, compared to people in urban areas. The health disparities facing rural Americans stem from many factors – including geographic, economic, social, and systemic issues.

But in the midst of all this, there is hope. There’s greater awareness of the importance of rural health care and public health resources, and a growing number of federal agencies dedicated to supporting data-driven solutions aimed at addressing rural health challenges.

Two individuals behind some of those efforts join the Health Disparities podcast to discuss rural health challenges and opportunities:

• Tom Morris, Associate Administrator for the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy at HHS
• Diane Hall, Director for the Office of Rural Health in CDC's Public Health Infrastructure Center

“There's been a lot of focus on access to health care in rural areas, which is absolutely incredibly important,” Hall says. “But I also think we need to really pay attention to the public health infrastructure, which has also been decreased because of budget issues [and] because of the impact of the pandemic.”

Addressing rural health needs is a bipartisan issue, says Morris.

“There may be disagreements about how you get to the outcome, but there's no disagreement about what the challenges are,” Morris says. “...The partisan divide sort of falls apart when you dive into the issues.”

Morris and Hall speak with Health Disparities podcast host Bill Finerfrock about the priorities of their respective offices, common myths about rural America, and what gives them hope as they consider the future of rural health.

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Congresswoman Terri Sewell says she’s honored to have called John Lewis a colleague, friend and mentor. Lewis, one of the most important civil rights leaders in American history, died in 2020. But his legacy is carried on by health equity champions like Sewell, who has taken up the mantle on legislation that aims to address health disparities in our nation.

“The John Lewis Equity in Medicare and Medicaid Treatment Act — it really is an opportunity to reduce health disparities and to evaluate payment models of Medicare and Medicaid that will take social determinants of health into account,” Sewell says. “I really do believe that health disparities is a civil rights issue, and the opportunity to carry on a bill that [John Lewis] championed, now that he's gone, is a real highlight of my career.”

Now in her seventh term representing Alabama’s 7th Congressional District, Rep. Terri Sewell is one of the first women elected to Congress from Alabama — and the first Black woman to ever serve in the Alabama Congressional delegation.

She speaks with Health Disparities podcast host Bill Finerfrock about how her personal experiences have led her to the work she’s doing today in Congress and also shares these words of encouragement to those working to advance health equity in their communities:

“Stay in the trenches, continue to mobilize and organize around these issues and continue to fight… and advocate for what we know is a civil rights issue. It is a human rights issue, health care, and so we can be frustrated, we can be downright mad, but what we can't do is give up.”

A note to our listeners: Movement Is Life’s upcoming annual summit brings together stakeholders from diverse backgrounds to discuss healthy equity challenges and actionable solutions.

This year’s theme is: "Health Equity: Solutions from Healthcare Leaders.” The summit will take place in Atlanta, Georgia, from November 14 to 15. Registration is now open – find all the details at our website, and get signed up today!

Never miss an episode – be sure to subscribe to The Health Disparities podcast from Movement Is Life on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Americans are on track to need 1 million knee replacements annually by the year 2025. The rate of disability caused by degenerative joint problems is also on a rise. At the same time, rates of physical activity continue to decline, and sedentary lifestyles and obesity are becoming the main cause of diabetes and heart disease.

It's a vicious cycle of pain, immobility, chronic illness, all of which impact underserved populations most. It’s why Movement is Life created Operation Change – an evidence-based behavioral change program focused on grassroots community interventions.

Operation Change has programs running in cities across the U.S. In today's episode, Health Disparities podcast host Chiara Rodgers speaks with two people involved in the Operation Change chapter in St. Louis:

• Dr. Darlene Donegan, program director for Operation Change St Louis
• Dr. Kiaana Howard, assistant professor of physical therapy and orthopedic surgery at Washington University School of Medicine in St Louis

A note to our listeners: Operation Change will be featured at Movement Is Life’s upcoming annual summit, which brings together stakeholders from diverse backgrounds to discuss healthy equity challenges and actionable solutions.

This year’s theme is: "Health Equity: Solutions from Healthcare Leaders.” The summit will take place in Atlanta, Georgia, from November 14 to 15. Registration is now open – find all the details at our website, and get signed up today!

Never miss an episode – be sure to subscribe to The Health Disparities podcast from Movement Is Life on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts.