AI in Rural Health: Data, insights, and discussion on AI's growing role in rural hospital operations

How are urban and rural hospitals adopting and using artificial intelligence? And what factors are shaping AI adoption in rural hospitals?

In this recorded webinar, Dr. Brian Whitacre, Professor of Agricultural Economics at Oklahoma State University, shares recent data on AI adoption, use, and evaluation across hospitals—including a real-world case study of AI in action, followed by an engaging Q&A and discussion with participants.

In this webinar:

• New insights into AI adoption in urban and rural hospitals
•  Key factors influencing AI adoption in rural communities
• A real-world AI case study
• Audience discussion and Q&A

Watch to learn what the data is telling us about the future of AI in rural healthcare.

Video length: 40 minutes.

Critical Access Hospitals and Rural Emergency Hospitals in Oklahoma, September 2026

Click the image below to open the map as a PDF document.

Renal Disease Overview

Betsy Graham-Mueller, Senior Medical Science Liaison at CorMedix provides a comprehensive overview of renal disease, focusing on chronic kidney disease (CKD), end-stage renal disease (ESRD), and dialysis-related complications. The session highlights disparities in renal health for rural populations, the importance of early detection and treatment, and strategies to prevent catheter-related bloodstream infections (CRBSIs). Betsy also discusses practical prevention methods, such as infection control protocols and patient-first approaches, to improve outcomes for high-risk individuals. The video runs for approximately 33 minutes.

Critical Access Hospitals and Rural Emergency Hospitals in Oklahoma, October 2024

Click the image below to open the map as a PDF document.

2024 Health Equity Webinar Series Part 5: Implementation & Evaluation

Lindsay Corcoran of Wintergreen joins Lara Brooks from the Oklahoma Office of Rural Health for the final installment of the 2024 Health Equity Webinar Series. In this session, Lindsay addresses the importance of sustaining key activities and measuring success and outcomes. The video runs for approximately 43 minutes.

2024 Health Equity Webinar Series Part 4: Community Collaboration

Lindsay Corcoran of Stroudwater Associates joins Lara Brooks from the Oklahoma Office of Rural Health for the fourth installment of the 2024 Health Equity Webinar Series. In this session, Lindsay discusses the importance of community collaboration and overcoming partnership barriers. The video runs for approximately 54 minutes. This is the fourth of five webinars in the series.

2024 Health Equity Webinar Series Part 3: Data Collection and Analysis

Lindsay Corcoran of Stroudwater Associates, joins Lara Brooks from the Oklahoma Office of Rural Health for the third installment of the 2024 Health Equity Webinar Series. In this session, Lindsay highlights the importance of health data and offers an overview of best practices in data collection. The video runs for approximately 58 minutes. This is the third of five webinars in the series.

2024 Health Equity Webinar Series Part 2: Strategy

Lindsay Corcoran of Stroudwater Associates, joins Lara Brooks from the Oklahoma Office of Rural Health for the second installment of the 2024 Health Equity Webinar Series. Lindsay discusses the importance of integrating health equity into an organization’s strategy and explores approaches to prioritize health equity as a strategic objective. The video is approximately 58 minutes long. This is the second installment of a five-part webinar series.

2024 National Health Service Corps (NHSC) Site Certification Process

Jana Castleberry and Melanie Reese from the Oklahoma Office of Primary Care and Rural Health Development join Lara Brooks to discuss the upcoming National Health Service Corps (NHSC) site certification. The wide-ranging discussion includes information about the primary care health professional shortage area (HPSA) designation process, the NHSC Loan Repayment Program, OK Health Corps, J-1 Visa Waivers, and the Conrad 30 Waiver program. The recording lasts approximately 53 minutes.

Economic Impact of a Rural Health Clinic

Staff from the OSU Center of Rural Health, Oklahoma Office of Rural Health, along with faculty from the OSU Department of Agricultural Economics presented a research poster at the National Rural Health Association's 47th Annual Rural Health Conference in New Orleans, Louisiana. The poster examined the economic impact of federally designated rural health clinics (RHC) in Oklahoma.

Click the image below to open the poster as a PDF document.

2024 Health Equity Webinar Series Part 1: Overview

Lindsay Corcoran of Stroudwater Associates, joins Lara Brooks from the Oklahoma Office of Rural Health for the first installment of the 2024 Health Equity Webinar Series. Lindsay presents a general overview of health equity, social determinants of health, and new CMS health equity measures for rural providers. The video lasts approximately 43 minutes.

This is the 1st installment of a 5 part webinar series.

Oklahoma Office of Primary Care & Rural Health Development Overview

Jana Castleberry and Melanie Reese from the Oklahoma Office of Primary Care and Rural Health Development join Lara Brooks to provide an overview of their office. The wide-ranging discussion includes information about the primary care health professional shortage area (HPSA) designation process, the National Health Service Core (NHSC) Loan Repayment Program, OK Health Corps, J-1 Visa Waivers, and the Conrad 30 Waiver program. The recording lasts approximately 37 minutes.

2023 RHC Webinar Series Part 4: Expanding Access to Specialty Provider Services

Gregory Wolf and Zach Boser of Wintergreen discuss different models of specialty care delivery and the operational and financial considerations of each. The recording lasts approximately 1 hour and 4 minutes. This is the 4th webinar in a 4 part series for rural health clinics.

Know Your Value: Regional Collaboration and Competition

Gregory Wolf and Zach Boser of Wintergreen discuss how rural healthcare providers can develop collaborative networks and partnerships to optimize access and deliver high-quality care. The recording lasts approximately 54 minutes. This is the 8th webinar in a 9-part series geared towards rural hospital CEOs and CFOs.

MPQIP Antibiotic Stewardship Implementation: What's New and Overview

Sarah Brinkman, MBA, MA, CPHQ of StratisHealth discusses the importance of antibiotic stewardship for critical access hospitals (CAH) and the related Medicare Beneficiary Quality Improvement Project (MBQIP) measure. The video lasts approximately 54 minutes.

Fund Your Mission: Practical Steps to Move From Volume to Value

Jonathan Pantenburg, MHA of Wintergreen joins Lara Brooks, MS from the Oklahoma Office of Rural Health to discuss how critical access hospitals can transition to value-based care delivery. The recording lasts approximately 38 minutes. This is the 7th webinar in a 9-part series geared towards rural hospital CEOs and CFOs.

2023 RHC Webinar Series Part 3: How Primary Care & Hospital Operations Can Work Together

Jonathan Pantenburg, MHA of Wintergreen joins Lara Brooks, MS from the Oklahoma Office of Rural Health to present a high-level discussion covering how hospitals can work with rural primary care providers to improve patient/population health outcomes. The recording lasts approximately 58 minutes. This is the 3rd webinar in a 4 part series for rural health clinics.

2023 Rural Health Clinic Webinar Series Part 2: Improving Revenue - Building Front-End Competencies

Carrie Bova of Wintergreen joins Lara Brooks, MS from the Oklahoma Office of Rural Health and presents a series of best practices rural health clinics can follow to increase patient revenue. The recording lasts approximately 51 minutes. This is the 2nd webinar in a 4 part series for rural health clinics.

2022-2023 Swing Bed Webinar Series Part 3: Education, Skilled Care & Documentation

Lindsay Corcoran of Stroudwater Associates joins Lara Brooks from the #Oklahoma Office of Rural Health for the 3rd installment of our 2022-23 Swing Bed Webinar Series. Lindsay provides a wide-ranging discussion of skilled nursing care and rehab care as they relate to swing bed programs. She also reviews swing bed documentation standards. The video lasts approximately 60 minutes. This is the 3rd installment of a 4 part webinar series.

CAH Board Governance Series, Session 4: The Hospital Board & Quality

Janelle Shearer of StratisHealth joins Lara Brooks from the Oklahoma Office of Rural Health to discuss the role hospital board members play in the delivery of quality health care at their facilities. The recording lasts approximately 50-minutes. This is the 4th installment in a series.