Two interesting articles have been recently published. One deals with the closing of the hospital in rural Milam County, Texas. This has caused residents to travel further for care and has disincentivized some to seek needed care.
Days after the two hospitals in Milam County abruptly shuttered in December, Renee Mueck started feeling stomach pain so sharp she couldn’t drive herself to the nearest hospital about 40 minutes away.
Mueck, 60, said her husband drove her to a hospital in Temple, but her appendix burst before emergency room doctors could operate on it.
“It’s been devastating to everybody because in an emergency now, you have to run to Temple or to Bryan-College Station,” Mueck said. “There’s not a local facility, and it makes it hard on everybody because you never know what you’re going to need emergent care for.”
A group of West Virginia researchers believe telehealth nurse access may prevent health emergencies among discharged long-term care residents in rural areas. This fall, they are launching a pilot study to find out.
