Recruitable Community Program

The Recruitable Community Program (RCP) was initiated in WV in 1998 and focuses on increasing a rural community’s recruiting potential.  The original RCP strategies included:

1.  Enhancing the ability of rural communities to recruit medical providers through community development and increased knowledge of recruitment and retention issues.    
2. Placing primary care resident, nurse practitioner and physician assistant trainees in selected communities to make them more familiar with the rewards and challenges of practicing in rural areas. 

To further stabilize West Virginia’s rural health care infrastructure and improve access to quality health care services, the RCP has developed a collaborative relationship with the Division of Rural Health (DRH) within the Office of Community Health Systems, Bureau for Public Health,  Department of Health and Human Resources.  The DRH serves as the focal point for rural health issues in West Virginia and contributes to innovative approaches for addressing rural health care needs of West Virginians.  The Division collaboratively plans and develops policy, provides technical assistance and provides statewide coordination of rural health activities.  The collaborative process between RCP and DRH involves eliminating duplication while effectively maintaining access to community development expertise for rural communities. 

The result of the collaborative partnership was the transfer of the Recruitable Community Program from WVU Department of Family Medicine to the Bureau for Public Health as an established Program within the DRH.  The RCP brings to the table links to the community and the established community development methodology that is now partnered with the DRH structural and financial stability.

Cornerstones of the Program have been and will continue to be:

• Frequent interaction between participant communities and program personnel whowork with the communities providing technical assistance and maintaining focus as they work through the various RCP components;
• Visits to participant communities initially by a “first impression” team that assesses the appearance of the community and provides recommendations for enhancing its image to recruits and others, and subsequently form a “community design” team that makes assessments and recommendations for general community development and for enhancement of community recruiting potential;
• Recruitment workshops with a rural focus; and
• Continued technical assistance to the community recruitment boards of the participant communities.

Role of the RCP Program Coordinator

A position within the Division of Rural Health provides coordination of the day to day operations of the Recruitable Community Program (RCP).   The salary for this position is paid with State funds.  The significant function of this position is to ensure the implementation of the objectives of the program.  Tasks include providing contact and communications between rural health agencies, WVU Extension Service, First Impressions Teams, Community Design Teams, community recruitment boards, directors of primary care residency programs, physician assistant and nurse practitioner training programs in WV, and the staff and faculty at WVU School of Medicine.  This staff person attends meetings at the individual community sites, as well as group meetings, and serves as the facilitator of these groups as needed.

The Coordinator is a "community encourager", helping communities formulate recruitment boards and plan for recruiting, and helping RCP communities  prepare for the team visits.  The Coordinator develops and presents workshops at community sites to facilitate the team approach. The Coordinator is responsible for scheduling the First Impressions and Community Design Team visits and serves as a member of the Community Design Teams.

Nancy Melton, is the Recruitable Community Coordinator for the Division of Rural Health.
Nancy Melton, RCP Coordinator, nancymelton@wvdhhr.org 

Recruitable Community Program Brochure (PDF format requires Adobe Acrobat Reader)

Role of the RCP Medical Consultant

C. Kennard Shannon, M.D., Ph.D., Research Director, WVU Department of Family Medicine, conceptualized the Recruitable Communities Program after his completion of 13 years of full-time rural practice in his rural home county in West Virginia.  Dr. Shannon continues to provide consultation to the program through grant funding from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation.  The progression of RCP into a program within the Bureau for Public Health is a positive indication of the coordination between the Division of Rural Health, West Virginia University Department of Family Medicine, Division of Primary Care, Division of Recruitment, the Center for Rural Health Development, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the Benedum Foundation and rural community leaders. 

Dr. Shannon’s role is to provide mission direction toward meeting goals, providing the rural physician perspective to the Program, assisting the DRH and other partners in pursuing program funding, participation in the First Impressions and Community Design Teams for each RCP community, coordination with other academic departments, rural health agencies, and contractors to the program, site visits to communities during critical phases of the Program, coordination of Program with statewide R&R efforts and programs, formulation of research programs relevant to the RCP, development of the RCP model and technical assistance materials in collaboration with the DRH program staff and other rural health agencies, development of materials useful for community education on recruitment and retention issues and reporting results of the Program.

Recruitable Community Program Pamphlet (PDF format requires Adobe Acrobat Reader)

Creating A Collaborative Partnership With Rural Communities

In order for a community to be considered for participation in the RCP, the community must:

• Demonstrate a Need for primary care physician and/or non-physician providers
• Select a Recruitment Board of local knowledgeable individuals and opinion leaders in order to enhance the recruitment organization and effort (e.g. physician, health care agency administrator or board member, realtor, banker, social worker, merchant, board of education member, extension agent, RHEP Site Coordinator, RHEP board members, local government officials, community economic development professionals and lay people, etc.).
• Identify a Sponsor (e.g. hospital, clinic, chamber of commerce, business, civic group) that will provide some financial backing for practice start-up costs.
• Develop a Preliminary Plan for Long-Term Practice Viability that identifies how a new provider will have access to financial and support services.

Creating An Impact And Implementing The Program

This unique project, with its focus on the role of the “community” in the recruitment of health professionals, will help the selected rural communities by:

• Providing the communities with community development and health care expertise through a valuable community assessment and recommendations for enhancing current recruitment techniques.
• Assisting with the organization of a community recruitment effort.
• Strengthening community ties to training programs.
• Enhancing general appeal of community, thereby facilitating the Retention and Recruitment of Health Care Professionals.