Behavioral health care is a critical yet often overlooked aspect of rural healthcare. Many rural communities face barriers like a shortage of mental health professionals, stigma surrounding mental health issues, and limited access to care. These challenges lead to significant unmet needs, particularly in behavioral health services for children, adolescents, and older adults.

The Chippewa Valley is poised to become a leader in rural healthcare innovation through the creation of a dynamic "sandbox ecosystem." This ecosystem will operate on multiple levels, generating various forms of testbeds to address critical healthcare needs and develop solutions that can be scaled across rural communities.

The COVID-19 pandemic and recent closures of regional healthcare facilities have underscored the vulnerabilities of our rural health systems. Now is the time to seize this moment and position the Chippewa Valley as a global leader in reimagining rural healthcare delivery.

Until recently, the Chippewa Valley celebrated the breadth and depth of its healthcare resources as a vital community asset. However, the departure of anchor healthcare institutions has brought the fragility of the region's health infrastructure into sharp focus. Local facilities report a 100% increase in emergency department cases, and pregnant mothers now face hours-long commutes to deliver. These challenges are not unique to the Chippewa Valley but are symptomatic of a broader need to redesign rural health systems.

The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, along with Chicago-based Health Equity Innovation Partners, is initiating a collaboration to assemble health care providers, entrepreneurs and other partners to find solutions to improve health care delivery in rural areas. The three-pronged goal is to improve rural health care access and outcomes while reducing costs.