Tennessee Department Of Health Case Study

Agency Background Information The State of Tennessee Department of Health (TDH) received the name after many years of evolving through various roles and responsibilities of public health. In 1877 a bill was signed into law that created a State Board of Health to assist in organizing and improving the current health concerns during that time (“TDH”, 2016). In the 1800s, Nashville, Knoxville, Memphis and many smaller towns experienced life-threatening diseases that caused death and economic loss. The State Board of Health had obligations such as battling epidemics, creating county boards of health, improving the sanitation of schools, and maintaining vital records of births and deaths in the state (“TDH”, 2016). In 1923, as health necessities expanded due to the population growth and the discovery of new …show more content…
The Tennessee State Office of Rural Health organizes and manages grant programs that improve health care on a county and state level. SORH main goals are to create innovative advances and deliver information to rural parts of Tennessee, strategize to create one-of-a-kind health activities utilizing their resources, provide technical support to public and non-profit entities serving rural populations (“TDH”, 2016). SORH is made up of three programs, Medicare Rural Hospital Flexibility Program (FLEX), Small Rural Hospital Improvement Program (SHIP), and Primary Care Office (PCO). FLEX is federally funded and targets to improve access to preventive and emergency health services for rural residents. SHIP helps support small hospitals with 49 staffed beds or fewer by providing equipment, updating health information technology, payment bundling, and assisting in the transition to the new ACA guidelines to improve quality of care. PCO focuses on increasing the amount of health care providers in underserved areas, like rural