Sherman County

Last updated January 2012

Sherman 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

• 2 students from Sherman County are currently studying at KU Medical Center
• Sherman 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

• 3 KU Medical Center graduates live and/or practice in Sherman County
• 1 health care provider has been placed in Sherman County through the Kansas Recruitment & Retention Center, which provides placement assistance to rural health organizations and seeks to enhance the quality and quantity of health care professionals in rural Kansas since 2003.
• 2 Sherman 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.
• 255 temporary physician coverages allowing Sherman County physicians time off in 2011, made via Kansas Locum Tenens and Kansas Medical Resource.
• 1 Sherman County employer exhibited with 2011 Kansas Career Opportunities, which is designed to introduce medical students, residents and other health care professionals to rural communities seeking health care providers.
• 45 health care professionals from Sherman County participated in continuing education courses and conferences from July 2010 to June 2011.
• 90 professional education and administrative visits in Sherman County occurred in 2011 via telemedicine, an interactive video technology that connects providers and patients when distance separates the two, operated by the KU Center for Telemedicine and Telehealth.

Researching to Improve Health

• Hospitalization has been identified as a teachable moment in which patients may be more likely to quit smoking. Sherman 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.
• 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

• 387 visits with Sherman 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.
• 620 Kansans received free medical attention through preventive screenings and events hosted in Sherman County with support from KU Medical Center in 2011.
• Goodland Regional Medical Center is a member of the Midwest Cancer Alliance, a network of hospitals, physicians groups, and cancer support and patient advocacy organizations bringing cancer research, care, and professional support together to advance the quality and reach of cancer care, prevention, early detection, and survivorship in the Heartland.
• KUMC's pioneering telemedicine program marks 20 years, published December 2011

• Read about one Sherman County woman's cancer journey in Psycho-oncologists take care of cancer patients' emotional health, published May 2012