Advocating for More Accessible Health Care in Rural Areas

Bilal Ahmed, M.D.

Finding ways to make health care more accessible in rural areas is a passion of mine. Rural Americans face a wide range of health disparities compared with their urban counterparts. According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) more than 46 million Americans, or 15 percent of the U.S. population, live in rural areas as defined by the U.S. Census Bureau and are more likely to die from heart disease, cancer, unintentional injury, chronic lower respiratory disease, and stroke than their urban counterparts. Residents of rural areas in the United States tend to be older and sicker than their urban counterparts.

I grew up in Pakistan and trained in England and have seen people living in rural areas around the world. In my leadership role here in Rochester, in the Southern Tier and Wyoming County, I have observed that the problems aren’t the same, but they are parallel. There are people who don’t have access to transportation who are living in houses with no electricity. In addition to the diseases listed, there are a myriad of health problems including addiction, mental health and domestic abuse that need to be addressed.

To improve healthcare for women, The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has made it a priority to collaborate with rural partners and stakeholders at the national, regional, state, and local levels to reduce rural maternal health disparities and improve access to high-quality maternal healthcare for women and their babies living in rural communities.

As part of UR Medicine, we are taking steps to help address these problems. We have received a grant from HRSA to support the training of Family Medicine residents in a rural setting and help increase access to Family Medicine and Obstetrics for historically marginalized and low-income rural residents and all women of reproductive age in Allegany, Livingston, Steuben, and Wyoming counties. (see related article). In addition, Noyes Memorial has created food kitchens for food insecurity at sites in the Southern Tier and rural areas.

As a not for profit, it is our moral obligation to do all we can to help address these issues in our community. We will continue to find ways to find the resources to improve health care in our rural areas and support those who depend on us for their care.

10/19/2023