When most people think of TruServe, they think of a data collection tool used by State Offices of Rural Health to track technical assistance or help submit PIMS measures to the Federal Office. However, as the Michigan Primary Care Office (PCO) has found, Truserve is so much more! The Michigan PCO first heard about TruServe from their partners at the Michigan Center for Rural Health and knew it would benefit their office.
Matt Strycker, NOSORH Program Manager, and Mark Barclay, TruServe Coordinator at the University of North Dakota Center for Rural Health, recently sat down with Amber Myers, PCO Director, Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, to talk about how her office utilizes TruServe.
“Our biggest issue before TruServe was how overwhelmed our office gets while trying to track our technical assistance in an Excel spreadsheet,” Myers said. Everyone in the office would track their own technical assistance and submit them to the secretary, who would then compile them.
With the help of TruServe, they can now track individual and group technical assistance, even breaking down their reach based on organization type. They have a better pulse of who the staff is in communication with across the geographic regions of Michigan, which programs do more of the outreach or don’t have touchpoints, and what types of clients receive technical assistance.
“We have been able to focus our work based on our reports, and it has helped lower staff time wasted on the compilation of the old data,” Myers said. “We can now better utilize our resources for how we are reaching out to the communities in Michigan.”
Myers also points out the exceptional customer service that Barclay provides: “Mark has been invaluable with how quick he is to respond. His monthly trainings are great for new staff and onboarding, or if you just need a quick refresher.”
If you have any questions about TruServe or would like information, click here or contact Matt Strycker, stryckerm@nosorh.org or Mark Barclay, mark.barclay@und.edu.
The next TruServe training will be on Wednesday, May 26, at 2:00 pm Eastern.