'Forward-thinking efforts’ at rural health system expand access, strengthen the workforce
Like other rural health systems, the University of Vermont Health Network is still recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic and facing unprecedented challenges like high demand for care, severe staffing shortages and increasing costs. In response, the health system is focusing on to guide its work: Experience (of patients, employees and others); Education and Research Mission (through learning and innovation); Stewardship (to build healthy communities and public trust); and Operational Excellence (to attain financial stability).
UVM Health’s efforts include:
- Prioritizing patient access to surgical services at three of the system’s hospitals, to address long-standing patient wait times.
- Partnering to provide education and training initiatives and financial support to people in the community interested in health care careers.
- Alleviating the region’s housing shortage with two new housing units and exploring additional opportunities to invest in high-quality housing and child care for health care workers.
- Launching self-scheduling in MyChart so patients can schedule appointments for health care services directly.
- Expanding eConsult services across the system, expediting the patient referral process and allowing virtual patient consults with specialists.