Center for Rural Health to support federal VA's Office of Rural Health The Center for Rural Health has been selected to provide support to the federal Office of Rural Health (ORH) within the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The five-year, multimillion dollar partnership will provide program and regulatory support for rural VA endeavors. The newly created ORH is charged with establishing processes that will enhance the delivery of care to rural veterans, supporting studies that improve health care, testing innovative care delivery models through new pilot programs, and using newly generated information to translate these results into policies to be shared across the continuum of care for rural veterans. “What we discover through the Center’s projects will influence how veteran health care is delivered across rural America,” said Alana Knudson, associate director for research at the UND Center for Rural Health and the Fargo VA Medical Center. The Center for Rural Health will provide support in such areas as communications, dissemination of new research, and development of an ORH Web site. The Center for Rural Health’s partners in this effort include Georgetown University, Washington, D.C.; the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago; Atlas Research LLC; and the National Rural Health Association. “UND’s Center for Rural Health views rural veterans’ health care needs as a priority concern. We’re committed to doing everything we can to help ensure the success and value of the federal Office of Rural Health to rural veterans,” said Mary Wakefield, director of the Center for Rural Health. “Through collaborative projects, the Center for Rural Health can continue to fulfill its mission of strengthening the health of people in rural communities,” says Dr. Knudson. “The ORH will help ensure that quality care is provided for rural veterans.” -- Wendy Opsahl, Communications Coordinator, Center for Rural Health, wopsahl@medicine.nodak.edu, 777-0871