UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — During October and November of 2015, the Pennsylvania Office of Rural Health (PORH) presented six awards to honor organizations and individuals who took leadership roles in rural health causes.
The awards were presented in venues throughout the commonwealth by Lisa Davis, director of PORH and outreach associate professor of health policy and administration at Penn State.
On Oct. 22, Davis presented state Sen. Gene Yaw (R-23rd District) with the 2015 Rural Health Legislator of the Year Award, which recognizes a Pennsylvania legislator for outstanding for work and support of rural health initiatives that address an identified need in their district or across the state. Yaw was honored for the substantial contribution he has made to rural health in Pennsylvania in his role as chairman of the Center for Rural Pennsylvania. Specifically, he organized and hosted a series of public hearings in July and August of 2014 on the heroin epidemic facing Pennsylvania.
The 2015 State Rural Health Leader of the Year Award was presented on Nov. 3 to Gary Tennis, Pennsylvania’s secretary of drug and alcohol programs. The award recognizes an outstanding leader who has organized, led, developed, or expanded an exemplary multi-dimensional rural community health program or initiative and who has demonstrated leadership to a rural community health program.
To address the drug overdose crisis in the commonwealth, Tennis led efforts to increase the availability of the drug Naloxone to police and first responders. Naloxone is an antidote that reverses the effects of a drug overdose. Because of Tennis’ efforts, training in how to administer Naloxone is now available to every Pennsylvania family whose loved one is at risk.
The 2015 Rural Health Program of the Year Award, which recognizes an exemplary health program that addresses an identified need in a rural community, was presented on Nov. 13 to Project Bald Eagle (PBE). Based in Lycoming County, PBE is a collaborative, multi-dimensional, integrated approach to addressing the public health epidemic of opioid addiction and the related deaths from overdose.
The mission of PBE is to reduce deaths due to opioid and heroin drug overdose in by increasing awareness, strengthening coalitions, reducing fragmentation of services, maximizing community resources, increasing community engagement, monitoring and evaluating surveillance data, and facilitating training.
Pennsylvania Rural Health Week (Nov. 16-20), which encompasses National Rural Health Day (Nov. 19), offered the backdrop for three additional awards. The 2015 Community Rural Health Leader of the Year Award was presented on Nov. 16 to Perry County Commissioner Brenda Benner for her efforts to improve health outcomes for all Perry County residents, especially the most vulnerable, through her leadership with the Perry County Health Coalition.
State Sen. Joseph Scarnati (R-25th District) was recognized on Nov. 17 for his efforts to advance rural health issues in Pennsylvania, specifically his support of the state’s 14 Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs). CAHs are small, rural hospitals that serve large Medicare and Medicaid populations.
On Nov. 19, Drs. Rarnzi Khalil and Saad Tabbara, cardiologists at Cardiology Associates in Kittanning, received the 2015 Rural Health Hero of the Year Award for the volunteer services they have given since 2014 to provide free care to heart failure patients at a Kittanning-based free clinic.
The clinic, under the direction of Dr. George Sokos, program director of the Heart Failure and Transplant Cardiology Fellowship program at Allegheny Health Network in Pittsburgh, provides cardiology services to patients in Armstrong County one day per week.
PORH was established in 1991 to enhance the health status of rural Pennsylvanians and strengthen the delivery and quality of care in the communities in which they live. Each year, the organization presents awards to recognize rural health programs and individuals who have made substantial contributions to rural health in Pennsylvania. To learn more about the Pennsylvania Office of Rural Health, visit www.porh.psu.edu.