Join us for an insightful webinar as we delve into the unique landscape of health in rural Texas. In 2021, 3 million Texans lived in rural areas, more than in any other state in the country. Rural Texans tend to be older and are at a greater risk of facing poor health outcomes. Residents in rural areas face unique health disparities rooted in economic, social, racial, ethnic, and geographic factors. Compounding this, rural Texas residents can face significant challenges accessing preventive, acute, maternity, and chronic care services. In this webinar, we will bring together experts to shed light on the issues affecting rural health in Texas and examine the innovative solutions that are advancing health care access and outcomes for rural Texans.

Learning Objectives:

1. Understand the current landscape of health in rural Texas

2. Learn about real-world examples that demonstrate successful innovations in health care access in rural Texas

3. Discuss long-term strategies that will benefit rural Texans

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‍Speakers

‍Adrian Billings, MD, PhD, FAAFP‍
Chief Medical Officer, Preventative Care Health Services FQHC

Dr. Adrian Billings, of Alpine, is the Chief Medical Officer of Preventative Care Health Services FQHC in the Big Bend, the Associate Academic Dean of Rural and Community Engagement and Senior Fellow of the F. Marie Hall Institute for Rural and Community Health at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center. Dr. Billings has been a career long rural community physician along the rural Texas-Mexico border of west Texas. Dr. Billings serves as an elected school board trustee for rural Alpine Independent School District, serves as an officer in the Texas Academy of Family Physicians and is on the Board of the Association of Clinicians for the Underserved. Dr. Billings is passionate about enabling rural borne and educated students opportunities to enroll in health care training programs.

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‍Kia Parsi, MD
Executive Director, A&M Rural & Community Health Institute

Dr. Parsi serves as the Executive Director for the Texas A&M Rural and Community Health Institute and as Associate Professor and Executive Director for the Texas A&M School of Medicine Rural Program. He has over 25 years of experience working as a rural physician in various models such as RHCs, FQHCs, and fee-for-service clinics, hospital care, long-term care, and hospice care. In addition, Dr. Parsi has extensive executive and physician leadership experience, working for over 6 years as the CMO and interim CEO for an integrated health care system that included 3 Critical Access Hospitals, 2 acute care hospitals, 2 nursing homes, and over 30 ambulatory clinics. Due to this breadth of experience, Dr. Parsi has the unique perspective of being involved as an administrator representing a rural health care institution as well as negotiating on the behalf of a larger health care organization.

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‍Ankit Sanghavi, MPH, BDS
Executive Director, Texas Health Institute

Ankit is the Executive Director of Texas Health Institute and Co-Lead of Texas Primary Care Consortium. Previously, he served as the Director of Community and Oral Health Program at THI. Ankit provides leadership and direction on all Texas Health Institute initiatives and develops collaborative efforts with its local, state, and national partners. Ankit earned a Master of Public Health from Texas A&M University in 2014 and Bachelor of Dental Surgery from Maharashtra University of Health Sciences India in 2011. His professional interests are research, innovation, and data in public health and healthcare.

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This webinar is produced by the Texas Primary Care Consortium with support from Episcopal Health Foundation, St. David’s Foundation, Texas Academy of Family Physicians, Texas Association of Health Plans, TMF Health Quality Institute, and UnitedHealthcare.

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