A trailblazing model for rural multiple sclerosis care
You live in rural America. You need to visit a doctor. You must drive several hours to reach one.
Now imagine you have a condition that requires specialized care like multiple sclerosis in a state with a limited number of neurologists, and you must wait months for an appointment.
As the Senior Director of Programs at the Rocky Mountain MS Center, Kerri Cechovic has heard frequently about these challenges from numerous individuals living with MS. According to Cechovic, approximately 95% of MS specialists work in urban centers and they are all managing a heavy caseload. Facing these obstacles, some patients hold off on getting medical care until an emergency occurs.
But a trailblazing partnership between the Rocky Mountain MS Center and the Bristol Myers Squibb Foundation (BMS Foundation), an independent charitable entity, is working to change that. With the help of a $740,668 grant from the BMS Foundation in 2021, the Rocky Mountain MS Center established the Rural Engagement Program to tackle barriers to MS care head-on while creating a blueprint for improving healthcare access in underserved communities across the country.
The Rocky Mountain MS Center’s Rural Engagement Program provides rural Coloradans with immediate access to a suite of services tailored to their needs. The Center hosts and streams an online exercise class focused on adaptive movement twice a week; offers virtual mental health counseling and wellness coaching on demand; and hosts community events regularly across the region, providing in-person access to medical specialists and helping MS patients and care support partners meet and connect with their peers.
The program is built to bring everything closer to patients’ homes and cut through red tape. There's no referral process, there's no paperwork to sign, there's no waitlist," said Cechovic.
Cechovic’s colleague, Community Outreach Manager Sophie Semenjuk, recalled how the Rocky Mountain MS Center helped a young woman in a remote, rural Colorado town who recently received an MS diagnosis. The woman called the Rural Engagement Program in tears after reaching out to a physician specializing in MS care in the nearest larger city. She had been told there would be a six-month wait for an initial appointment. Within days, the Rocky Mountain MS Center helped to expedite her neurology appointment, enrolled the patient in talk therapy and virtual exercise classes and connected her with two other young women living with MS in her community – offering valuable support beyond just medical needs to provide vital social connection.
"Our rapid response reflects how seriously we take our mission to provide immediate, impactful care," said Semenjuk.
As the initiative evolves, so does its potential for wide-reaching impact nationwide. Services that specialize in supporting those with MS in rural communities are few and far between, yet the need is significant. "We're constantly discovering better ways to serve these communities, which is key as we look to expand," said Semenjuk.
Hurdles remain, but the Rural Engagement Program lights the way toward a future where all MS patients can access the top-notch, comprehensive care they need, no matter where they live. By bridging the urban-rural care divide, this innovative partnership is breaking new ground in advancing health equity - in Colorado and, maybe eventually, across the United States.