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Contact Information:

Center for Rural Health Improvement
1400 West 22nd Street
Sioux Falls, SD 57105
phone: 605-357-1500
fax: 605-357-1546
crhi@usd.edu

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Last Modified: 06/01/09

The Center for Rural Health Improvement was created by the Sanford School of Medicine of The University of South Dakota's  Department of Family Medicine in June 2002 with funds Senator Tim Johnson obtained through the appropriations process.  The Center builds on a new research emphasis of epidemiology and health services research within the School of Medicine.  

The mission of the Center for Rural Health Improvement of the SSOM Department of Family Medicine is to improve the health of rural South Dakotans through participatory community-based research targeted to the major health needs in these communities.

The Center will emphasize epidemiologic and health services research with major areas of study addressing   Health Care Access and Delivery, Disease Prevention, and Improved Health Outcomes.

What issues in health care access and delivery will the Center for Rural Health Improvement research?

Example topics in health care access and delivery include:

• Definition of health care environments
• Economic, social, and health issues of a region
• Health disparities of a region

Practice models

• Services provided
• Organizational designs
• Communication and information management
• Telemedicine

Best Practices

• Application of evidence-based medicine
• Establishment of practice guidelines
• Innovative treatment protocols
• Cost-effective care

The Center will focus on the following diseases:

• Cardiovascular Disease
• Diabetes Mellitus
• Cancer
• Infectious Disease
• Mental Health

The goal of the Center for Rural Health Improvement is to improve the health of rural South Dakotans through participatory community-based research targeted to the major health needs in these communities.  Through this South Dakota will see improved morbidity and mortality statistics, enhanced health related quality of life, and integrated and stable preventative and curative health care.  A secondary goal is to generate the interest of rural students, including American Indians, in health professions careers with the hope they will return to their home areas to serve their communities.  

The Center for Rural Health Improvement will bridge the campuses of Sanford School of Medicine utilizing the vast clinical faculty throughout the state, who provide health care to our citizens, in collaboration with academic faculty of the Department of Family Medicine to perform meaningful research in and for South Dakota.