• 25 have two or fewer active dentists in the entire county
• There is no dentist in 8 rural counties
• 15 have two or fewer physicians providing patient care for the entire county
• Only 11 of 47 rural counties are served by an organized public health department that includes comprehensive health department services.
• 75% of rural counties are served by only one public health nurse who is often responsible for the entire county.
• In 2006, 31 entire counties were designated as Primary Care Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs), 21 were partially designated, and only 12 counties were without a HPSA designation.
• 53% of Colorado’s counties are partially designated as Mental HPSAs.
Rural Coloradoans are more likely to be medically underserved, older, living in poverty, unemployed, without health insurance, and suffering disproportionately from certain chronic diseases.
In an effort identify and relieve the workforce problems in Colorado, the Colorado Rural Health Center administers a variety of programs.
CoRRRN - The Colorado Rural Health Center (CRHC) established the Colorado Rural Recruitment and Retention Network (CoRRRN) Advisory Committee in 1996 as a statewide network of organizations dedicated to addressing health professional shortages in rural Colorado. Participants of CoRRRN meet quarterly to exchange information, data, and resources regarding workforce issues. The CoRRRN participant organizations represent facilities, insurers, state and federal government programs, physicians, mid-level providers, educators, and other interested groups and agencies. Please click here for more information about CoRRRN.
Workforce Programs - The Colorado Rural Health Center’s programs and activities include the Marva Jean Jackson (MJJ) Rural Community Health Scholarships Program, STRIDE, The Colorado Rural Outreach Program (CROP), and the Colorado Provider Recruitment (CPR) Program. In addition, CRHC also works with the Western Area Health Education Center (AHEC), the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center Medical School, the Southeastern Colorado AHEC, and the Commission on Family Medicine.
These programs are possible thanks to funding from The Colorado Trust, the Boettcher Foundation, the Colorado Medical Society, the Colorado Medical Society Foundation, COPIC Medical Foundation, AF Williams Family Foundation, Colorado Family Practice Director’s Council, the Colorado Farm Bureau, the Colorado Society of Osteopathic Medicine, the Colorado Society of Osteopathic Family Physicians, Colorado Medical Society Alliance, Regional Medical Societies,
Please click on the links below to learn more about each of these programs!
