Redwoods Rural Health Center recruits provider through NHSC and HPSA programs

Approximately 50 million people live in federally designated primary care health professional shortage areas (HPSAs) located throughout the United States and its territories. Of these people, approximately 180,000 live within the service area of the North Coast Clinics Network (NCCN). Our community is medically underserved-our residents have limited access to primary health care due to financial, geographic, cultural, or language barriers. NCCN in conjunction with the National Health Service Corp (NHSC) and the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) is working to change this by helping medically underserved communities recruit and retain primary care clinicians, including dental and mental and behavioral health professionals, to serve in their community. North Coast Clinics Network monitors and applies for HPSA designations for the communities and clinics that serve Northern California’s patients. The HPSA designation assists Federally Qualified Health Centers to recruit and retain health care providers by offering benefits including loan repayment.

One local success of the Health Professional Shortage Area and National Health Service Corp programs was Redwoods Rural Health Center’s (RRHC) ability to recruit a dental provider. Redwoods Rural Health Center obtained a dental HPSA score of 22, which places them at the top of the list for NHCS dental positions in California. In September 2007, RRHC added Blake Olson, DDS to their staff. Blake Olson, a recent grad from University of Southern California, is focused on prevention and is conducing outreach to Latino Patients in Southern Humboldt County. In conjunction with other members of the primary health care team, Dr. Olson makes oral health an integral part of total health care.

For more information about the National Health Service Corp and Health Professional Service Areas visit:
http://nhsc.bhpr.hrsa.gov/index.cfm
http://bhpr.hrsa.gov/shortage/