Clinton, MO. – (April 25, 2024) – Golden Valley Memorial Healthcare (GVMH) is pleased to announce that it is one of six Missouri hospitals that has been selected to participate in the Transformation of Rural Community Health (ToRCH) pilot project sponsored by the Missouri Department of Social Services (DSS), MO HealthNet Division (MHD) to help improve health and wellbeing in rural communities across Missouri.
“We are thrilled to have been selected to participate in this extremely important trailblazing initiative,” said Tara Dull, Chief Compliance Officer and GVMH ToRCH Project Leader at GVMH. “This project empowers rural communities to work together to proactively address healthcare related social needs and strive to provide better health outcomes.”
Across the country, healthcare providers are recognizing the impact of Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) on patient outcomes and are seeking ways to address these needs. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, these needs, or SDOH, encompass the environmental conditions where individuals are born, grow, learn, work, play, worship and age. These factors impact various health outcomes, functioning and overall quality of life. Some examples of SDOH include safe housing, transportation, access to nutritious foods and physical activity opportunities.
ToRCH enables hospitals to act as community hubs, collaborating with partners to address SDOH and reduce preventable hospital admissions and emergency department visits. The model incentivizes improved population health through:
“I am proud that GVMH was chosen to participate, and we can help make a difference for our family, friends and neighbors across the state, and assist MO HealthNet in reducing downstream healthcare costs to Missouri Taxpayers,” said Craig Thompson, CEO at GVMH.
