Rooks County

Last updated January 2012

Rooks County is served by the Northwest Office of KU Medical Center's Area Health Education Centers (AHECs) in Hays, which provides quality professional education for health care providers and serves the eastern part of the state through health screenings, presentations and clinics.

Enhancing Student Education

• 3 students from Rooks County are currently studying at KU Medical Center
• 3 health professions students received hands-on training in Rooks County in 2011 through placement programs in rural and underserved communities, including SEARCH, Rural Preceptorship Program for KU medical students, and occupational therapy fieldwork.
• 5 K-12 students in Rooks County participated in activities during 2011 that showcased the rewards and exciting challenges of careers in health care, hosted by the Area Health Education Centers and health professions pipeline grants.
• Rooks County is part of the Northwest Medical Education Network with Michael Machen, MD, a resident of Quinter, serving as the Medical Education Director. The medical education director helps coordinate the School of Medicine's efforts to mentor, train and place physicians throughout Kansas.

Strengthening the Health Care Workforce

• 6 KU Medical Center graduates live and/or practice in Rooks County
• 2 Rooks County physicians received funding through the Kansas Bridging Plan, a loan-forgiveness program offered to primary care residents who agree to practice in rural Kansas since 1991.
• 11 temporary physician coverages allowing Rooks County physicians time off in 2011, made via Kansas Locum Tenens and Kansas Medical Resource.
• 61 health care professionals from Rooks County participated in continuing education courses and conferences from July 2010 to June 2011.

Researching to Improve Health

• Hospitalization has been identified as a teachable moment in which patients may be more likely to quit smoking. Rooks County is one 27 counties in Kansas to participate in Kan Quit II, an innovative research intervention that provides smoking cessation counseling, treatment and case management services to evaluate the effectiveness of the smoking cessation services. The project is led by Edward Ellerbeck, MD, MPH, and is sponsored by the National Cancer Institute and the National Institutes of Health.
• Women in Rooks County are currently participating in Rural Women Connecting for Better Health, a weight-loss maintenance program for rural breast cancer survivors that focuses on tools for success, including a low-calorie diet, high levels of physical activity, accountability and group support. The study is led by Christie Befort, PhD.
• Occupational therapists at KU Medical Center provide professional support and development for Kansas' Infant-Toddler Services. Working in every county, KUMC professionals evaluate effectiveness of early intervention services provided to families. Principal investigators Winnie Dunn, PhD, OTR, FAOTA, and Ellen Pope, Med, OTR, facilitate this ongoing project with the Kansas Department of Health & Environment.

Advancing Health Care Access

• 6 outreach clinic visits with KU Medical Center health care providers were made in Rooks County in 2011.
• 20 visits with Rooks County residents by KU Medical Center health care providers via telemedicine, an interactive video technology that connects providers and patients when distance separates the two, in 2011. To learn more about KU Medical Center's telemedicine services, click here.

Serving Communities

• KU's Northwest Area Health Education Center exhibited at the 2011 Rooks County Health Fair in Plainville.

Outreach Connections

• Plainville, New York Times Article Features Plainville Physician - Rural Health Education and Services
• Plainville, Switch to electronic records improves patients' health