I’ve long appreciated the quote, “be kind as everyone is fighting a difficult battle,” (unknown). When I look back at the director’s post from January 2025 it brings a smile and then a frown to my face. I highlighted the opportunities this year would bring, and our productive partnerships with rural communities to improve health and conduct research.

We are now in a different context. The rules of the game changed seemingly overnight.

Yet despite that frown, I am grateful to work side by side with ORPRN’s program leaders and our clinical, community, and health system partners who are also navigating a new context and uncertain terrain. Relationships still anchor the work we do at ORPRN, which enables us to find new ways to continue to advance health for all Oregonians through research, education, and health policy. I am impressed by the way our team, and our partners, are choosing courage even as federal programs, partners, and guidelines transition and shrink in size and scope. 

While I am not minimizing the changes to US health care and research that are facing ORPRN this year, I am impressed by the way we are navigating shifts. The whole team at ORPRN is working to find opportunity even in challenge, such as by:

• Standing up new and ongoing Extension for Community Health Outcomes (ECHO) programming with diverse funding streams and partnerships.
• Holding rural listening sessions to support our goals for the Primary Care Rural and Frontier Clinical Trials Innovation Center (PRaCTICe), a CARE for Health^TM Primary Care Network Research Hub, and through a partnership with the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) Action Collaboration on Community Practices Engaging in Clinical Trials.
• Leading ongoing work to advance the ability of clinics and community-based organizations to address unmet social needs.
• Partnering with programs and schools across OHSU, such as the Oregon Clinical and Translational Research Institute and Knight Cancer Center, to engage with partners across the state and nationally. Some of that work includes supporting deflection programs, cancer screening and prevention, atopic dermatitis, and person-centered care for patients with multiple chronic conditions.
• Partnering with Oregon Office of Rural Health to plan and deliver the 2024 Rural Listening Sessions. Please see the report here.

One of the biggest opportunities for us at present is to connect, articulate impacts, and stay focused on our goals. I’m grateful for each of your ongoing work to lead and thrive in this space of uncertainty, and to offer community-based solutions to overcome the challenges of our time.