Dr. Emily Onello, Recognized as a 2018 National Rural Health Day “Community Star” by the National Organization of State Offices of Rural Health

Duluth, Minn. – On the third Thursday of November every year, the National Organization of State Offices of Rural Health (NOSORH), leads National Rural Health Day, an annual day of recognition for those who serve the vital health needs of nearly 60 million people residing in America’s rural communities, estimated to be 1 in 5 Americans. NOSORH is the member organization serving all 50 State Offices of Rural Health (SORH) with Minnesota headquartered in St. Paul.

SORH’s provide support to rural hospitals, clinics, and first responders in several ways including technical assistance, funding that supports workforce development, population health management, quality improvement initiatives, and more.

In 2015, NOSORH asked SORH’s to nominate hospital and emergency first responder teams, community health, and volunteer service heroes on the front lines of rural health who were making a positive impact on rural lives. Soon after the stories started coming, the book of National Rural Health Day Community Stars was published.

Dr. Emily Onello, Assistant Professor in the Department of Family Medicine and BioBehavioral Health, University of Minnesota Medical School, Duluth Campus, will appear in the 2018 edition that will be available on the www.PowerofRural.org website, the official hub for National Rural Health Day and the Power of Rural movement, beginning November 15, 2018.

“When I heard about my nomination by the NOSORH as a 2018 Community Star, I felt very honored to be recognized by an organization with such a nationwide network of rural health champions,” said Dr. Onello. “In my role as medical school faculty, I have appreciated the tremendous opportunity to work with rural communities, rural healthcare organizations, faculty colleagues and rural family physicians to provide unique rural medical education experiences for our first and second-year medical students. Without these collaborations, my work wouldn't be possible and I am grateful for the valuable foundational work that has been done by rural medical educators before me,” added Onello.

In celebration of National Rural Health Day and Dr. Onello’s 2018 Community Star recognition, the University of Minnesota Medical School, Duluth Campus hosted a morning breakfast and a rural community health poster exhibit for students, faculty and staff members. This event was made possible by our Student Family Medicine Interest Group (FMIG) and the Medical School, Duluth Campus Foundation.

For more information about the University of Minnesota Medical School, Duluth Campus, visit www.med.umn.edu/about/duluth-campus.