Cuero Regional Hospital strengthens care through Texas A&M Health’s Rural Engagement Program

Whether or not “all roads lead to Cuero,” as some people believe, this south-central Texas city does hold several distinctions, including the “Wildflower Capital of Texas” and the “Turkey Capital of the World.” It also hosts the annual Turkeyfest Festival and is home to the Cuero Gobblers—four-time high school football state champions.

Cuero sits along the Guadalupe River and is one of Texas’s leading cattle producers and shippers. Each December, the city attracts nearly 100,000 visitors for its spectacular Christmas light display, and its picturesque Main Street stays active year-round with monthly events. Proud of its rich history, Cuero also maintains three museums that honor the founders and contributors who shaped this unique community.

Another point of pride for its residents is Cuero Regional Hospital (CRH), which has served the region for more than 120 years.

Lynn Falcone, MPH, who moved to Cuero nine years ago to become the CEO of CRH, praises the hospital’s physicians, nurses, health care providers and staff for their commitment to their neighbors.

“There is a phenomenal group of people at CRH who care deeply for this community,” Falcone said. “They are some of the most compassionate health care providers I have ever worked with.”

Falcone acknowledges the unique challenges rural health care facilities face and values the hospital’s work with the Texas A&M Health Rural Engagement Program. This state-funded initiative brings together resources from across Texas A&M Health—the colleges of medicine, nursing and pharmacy, the Rural and Community Health Institute and the Telehealth Institute—to enhance access and improve health care services for rural Texans. All programs are offered at no cost to participating rural facilities.

Justin Perkins, a member of the Rural Engagement Program team, meets personally with rural health care providers across the state to assess how the program can best meet their operational and technical needs. After meeting with Falcone and assessing CRH’s priorities, they chose to focus on staff education in workplace violence prevention and enhancing productivity and efficiency in the hospital laboratory.

To support the first priority, Perkins enlisted Brendan Riley, a workplace violence prevention subject matter expert with the International Association for Healthcare Security and Safety (IAHSS). Riley delivered five educational webinars to CRH staff during April— Workplace Violence Prevention Awareness Month—covering topics such as violence response and intervention, bedside protection and de-escalation, and threat assessment and management.

Riley emphasizes the importance of proactive education on this serious issue to ensure staff and patient safety.

“Workplace violence in health care is a global epidemic, and rural health care providers are not immune,” he said. “In fact, rural health care facilities may be at greatest risk due to limitations in funding, staffing, resources and external law enforcement response capabilities—especially compared to their academic medical center and urban/suburban community hospital counterparts.”

To improve laboratory operations, Perkins brought in William Lee, owner and CEO of AAA Laboratory Consulting. Since 2017, Lee has worked with rural health care facilities on compliance, profitability, maintenance and billing. He also provides training for laboratory managers and directors on best practices for effective lab management.

Following his collaboration with the CRH laboratory staff, Lee identified several opportunities to streamline operations and boost efficiency. He will continue to support the hospital as these improvements are implemented.

Falcone says the Rural Engagement Program has been a valuable partner—and looks forward to future collaborations.

“They can help us continue to provide safe, quality care to meet the needs of our community,” Falcone said. “As our industry changes, the program can help us keep up with the changes as well as continue to provide training and support to our staff.”