Strategic Initiatives and Process for Public Participation 



Rutland Regional Medical Center’s strategic planning process gathers and analyzes key information about the Rutland community and its healthcare needs through numerous means.

Rutland Regional Medical Center is governed by a board of directors comprised of local citizens who volunteer their time to make critical decisions regarding the implementation of Rutland Regional’s mission. Through the direct participation of community members on our board, our community has input into the decision making of and strategic planning for Rutland Regional.

Rutland Regional conducts ongoing needs assessments with the community, patients and area physicians using focus groups, market research surveys and structured interviews. Most recently there have been focus groups for cardiology patients, surgical patients, and patients with chronic health conditions.

Rutland Regional Medical Center annually provides an open Community Forum where it presents the Hospital Report and seeks public input for the next strategic planning process. These meeting are publicized in the local newspaper, and are open to the public in a venue that is accessible to all.

Rutland Regional organizes and conducts periodic community health assessments in collaboration with state and local health service agencies. These comprehensive assessments were most recently conducted in 1997, 2002, 2004, 2009, and 2012 and used a variety of information sources to identify health needs of the Rutland service area.

In May 2012, the most recent Rutland County Health Assessment was completed. Rutland Regional Medical Center's Bowse Health Trust convened the Assessment Team that guided the Health Assessment. The Assessment team represented the following organizations: Rutland Regional Medical Center, Bowse Health Trust, Rutland County United Way, Vermont Department of Health, Rutland Area Visiting Nurses Association & Hospice (RAVNAH) the Community Health Clinics of the Rutland Region (CHCRR), Rutland Regional Planning Commission, and Rutland Housing Authority.

The Health Assessment was completed in five (5) phases: Phase 1: Analysis of Vermont and Community Data; Phase 2: Survey of Rutland County Residents, area dentists and patients who used the emergency department for urgent care; Phase 3: Community Leader Focus Groups; Phase 4: Prioritizing Meeting with Community Leaders; Phase 5: Development of the Executive Summary/Final Report.

The next Rutland County Health Assessment will be completed in May 2015. Planning for this assessment will start in 2014.

Download a complete copy of the 2012 Rutland County Community Needs Assessment.

The Bowse Health Trust, a grant funding department of Rutland Regional Medical Center has revised its grant funding criteria based on the latest community needs. In 2012, the Bowse Health Trust funded 3 new programs. These include: 

• It’s a Girl Thing, hosted by the Girls Scouts which promotes healthy lifestyles
• GROW (Get Rid of Waste), hosted by Lothrop Elementary School which expands the gardening and composting program at the school
• Transitions, hosted by Rutland South Supervisory Union which provide case management for youth who are at risk for not graduating from high school

Based upon Rutland Regional's service area healthcare needs, the strategic planning process identified several initiatives that are currently planned or underway:

• Improving the coordination of care between the hospital and other community healthcare providers, organizations and agencies. Specific initiatives related to Orthopaedics, Oncology, Cardiology and Women’s Health services are underway.
• In the area of Improving Access & Affordability of Health and Human Services, one of the areas of focus is improving access to the primary care system. Below are some of the contributions by Rutland Regional:
  • Support of CHCRR in Brandon, Castleton, Rutland and Pawlet and a Dental Clinic in Rutland City
  • Rutland Regional continues to recruit providers
  • Hospitalist program allows primary care physicians to spend more time in the office
  • Rutland Regional has implemented a Hospital Information System (HIS) and Electronic Medical Record (EMR). Work is in process to interface the RRMC HIS and the local EMRs and the Vermont Health Information System.
• Rutland Regional assists the public in applying for insurance programs where needed.
• Rutland Regional continues to offer Tobacco Cessation and prevention counseling.
• Rutland Regional’s Community Education continues to offer workshops such as: Matter of Balance and three types Healthier Living Workshops
• Rutland Regional Medical Center is a leading partner in BAMBI (Babies and Mother’s Beginning In-sync) which provides support for pregnant women with substance abuse issues.
• The Rutland Diabetes and Endocrinology Center provides diabetes prevention programs.
• Rutland Regional Medical Center is actively participating in Vermont’s Blueprint for Health and has supported five practices in becoming Medical Homes, and provides Community Health Team support to 30,000 patients seen at those practices.
• Rutland Regional Medical Center is participating in the Rutland County Asthma Task Force which is aimed at improving asthma diagnosis, treatment and control for Rutland County residents.
• Rutland Regional Medical Center is coordinating a Congestive Health Failure Readmission Reduction Initiative.
• Rutland Regional Medical Center is participating in the planning with both state and local partners in the expandion of substance abuse treatment as defined as the Hub and Spoke Model.
• Organized recruitment and retention of providers to serve the healthcare needs of Rutland County into the future; including active support of the Federally Qualified Health Center in Rutland County.

In the area of reducing substance abuse, the goal is to increase the availability of Mental Health and Substance Abuse services. Below is a listing of the contributions by Rutland Regional:

• Rutland Regional expanded its services to offer Outpatient mental health services and expanded its Inpatient services.
• Rutland Regional’s Women's and Children’s Services provides “Wrap Around Services for Pregnant Women” Medication Prescription Program to reduce narcotic abuse.

In addition to the numerous ways in which Rutland Regional gathers information for strategic planning, Rutland Regional also achieves openness and inclusiveness through its several hundred Corporators who are a key link between members of the community and the hospital. The Corporators are included in Rutland Regional’s yearly meetings, which are open to the public. The Annual Meeting each spring is where new board members and Corporators are elected.



In addition to our Annual Meeting that is open to the public, Rutland Regional Medical Center hosts other events, forums and meetings throughout the year that allow members of our community to be directly involved in our work. These are advertised in our local newspapers. Information is also available by calling Community & Provider Relations at 802.747.1607. 



To obtain a copy of our Annual Report, strategic and capital plans, depreciation schedule or to obtain information about public events please contact:

Rutland Regional Medical Center 

Community & Provider Relations 

160 Allen Street 
Rutland, VT 05701
P: 802.747.1607
F: 802.747.6281 



Another process for public participation is to become a Volunteer at Rutland Regional. More than 353 volunteers contributed 50,565 hours of service to Rutland Regional in Fiscal Year 2012. For more information on volunteering contact:
 
Rutland Regional Medical Center
Director of Volunteer Services
160 Allen Street, Rutland, VT 05701
P: 802.747.3857
E: Volunteer Services