IUP, IRMC TEAMING UP FOR NATIONAL RURAL HEALTH DAY

Officials with both IUP and the Indiana Regional Medical Center announced this afternoon that both entities are teaming up for National Rural Health Day this Thursday.

In a news release, it was announced that both will be collaborating for a launch of a new podcast called “Rural Health Pulse.” It will be a free show available on IRMC’s website and will have monthly episodes produced by IUP Comm Media students under the direction of faculty member Dr. Mark Piwinsky.

Producing the podcast will be Christina Koren, IUP’s Director of Strategic Partnerships. Serving as the host will be IRMC Chief Human Resources Officer Dr. Jim Kinneer.

The show will focus on issues and stories impacting the regional health, as well as initiatives designed to improve healthcare and wellness.

The first episode will be available on Thursday and will feature Dr. Amanda Vaglia, a family medicine physician at IRMC.

upcoming topics and guests are:

Narayanaswamy Bharathan, chair, IUP Department of Biology, and Jackie Sansig, IRMC director of Laboratory and Respiratory Services, describing the unique COVID-19 testing collaborative and partnership (December)

Rick Adkins, IUP professor of mathematics, discussing the collaborative wastewater research project and COVID-19 analytics (January)

Dan Clark, IRMC director, Minimally Invasive and Robotic Surgery; director, IRMC Comprehensive Breast Center, discussing robotics in surgery (February)

An introduction to IRMC residents (March)

Dan Clark, IRMC director, Minimally Invasive and Robotic Surgery; director, IRMC Comprehensive Breast Center, discussing breast cancer (April)

Steve Hovan, interim dean, IUP John J. and Char Kopchick College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, discussing IUP’s Kopchick Hall, future home to the Kopchick College (May)

Wendy Haislip, IRMC Vice President and Chief Nursing Officer, Pennsylvania rural health model and workforce challenges (June)
Erin Clark, clinic director at IUP’s Speech and Hearing Clinic and assistant professor in the IUP Department of Communication Disorders, Special Education, and Disability Services, discussing the clinic’s community outreach (July)