Members of Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro’s cabinet, Pennsylvania senators and representatives, and key healthcare and industry leaders will come together to discuss important issues in rural healthcare during Indiana University of Pennsylvania and Indiana Regional Medical Center’s 2026 fifth annual Pennsylvania Mountains Rural Health Conference.
The annual conference celebrates National Rural Health Day and builds on the IRMC-IUP Day tradition of celebrating its many partnerships.
The conference, open to the community, is November 19 at the IUP Kovalchick Convention and Athletic Complex. Preregistration is requested and can be made on the IUP website. Registration begins at 7:30 a.m., and sessions continue through 5:00 p.m. Breakfast and lunch are included as part of the conference registration; 5.5 face-to-face Continuing Legal Education credits are available for attorneys practicing in Pennsylvania.
The conference is coordinated by IRMC Chief Operating Officer and Chief Human Resources Officer for Mountains Health Jim Kinneer and IUP Director of Strategic Partnerships and External Affairs Christina Koren.
“IUP remains committed to addressing the rural healthcare crisis, including providing important opportunities to build collaborative solutions,” IUP President Michael Driscoll said.
“IUP is very proud to partner with Mountains Health-IRMC for this annual event and to welcome members of the Governor’s cabinet and leadership team and our elected officials, including Pennsylvania Senate Majority Leader Senator Joe Pittman, Pennsylvania State Representative and Republican Chairman of the House Appropriations Committee Representative Jim Struzzi, and Indiana County commissioners Chairman R. Michael Keith, Bonni Dunlap, and Sherene Hess,” he said.
“IRMC and Mountains Health are proud to partner with IUP in bringing together healthcare leaders, elected officials, and industry partners to have these important conversations,” IRMC and Mountains Health President and CEO Steve Wolfe said.
“As three independent community hospitals partnering together, we understand firsthand the challenges and opportunities facing rural healthcare, and we recognize that working together is essential to ensuring our communities continue to have access to quality care close to home. This conference provides an important opportunity to share ideas, strengthen partnerships, and help shape the future of rural healthcare in Pennsylvania.”
IUP President Driscoll, Mountains Health and IRMC President and CEO Wolfe, and Indiana County elected officials will offer the welcome and opening remarks.
Pennsylvania’s Rural Health Transformation will be the topic of a morning panel discussion with Pennsylvania Department of Human Services Secretary Valerie Arkoosh, Department of Health Secretary Debra Bogen, Rural Health Transformation Program Director Brinna Ludwig, and Deputy Chief of Staff for Health and Human Services Lindsey Mauldin.
Morning sessions include:
- Jen Gilburg, deputy secretary for technology and entrepreneurship in the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development, presenting “Driving Rural Health Innovation: Pennsylvania Vision for Technology and Entrepreneurship” with updates on Pennsylvania’s efforts to support innovation in rural health.
- Joshua Dearing, president of the Pennsylvania Medical Society and a family medicine physician at UPMC, sharing an overview of the Pennsylvania Medical Society goals and priorities.
- Initial findings from the Rural Physician Retention Survey, done in partnership with IUP and the Center for Rural Pennsylvania, presented by Founding Dean of IUP’s College of Osteopathic Medicine Miko Rose and Director and Executive Research Association of IUP’s Applied Research Laboratory Paul Hawkins.
- A video presentation, “Rural Health in Motion + Collaboration Delivers” by Koren and IRMC/Mountains Health Director of Laboratory and Respiratory Services Jackie Sansig.
- Pennsylvania rural health advocate and former president of the Pennsylvania Medical Society Marty Raniowski, “Lessons in Rural Health Solutions: Perspectives from Government and Industry”
The annual Rural Health Hero awards will be presented immediately before the networking lunch, which includes a display of research posters by IUP student and faculty researchers. The authors of the research posters will be present for a question-and-answer session from noon to 1:15 p.m.
Topics being addressed at the conference during the afternoon concurrent sessions include:
- Special Rural Medic Initiative
- Advancing Rural Health Through Research and Publication
- Novel Approaches to Healthcare Pipelines – It’s a Changing World
- Rural Residency Updates from the Regional Collaborative
- Food is Medicine: Building Healthier Rural Communities
- New Data Resources for Educators
- PA School-Based Health Clinics
- Rural Health for All: Access for People with Disabilities and Special Needs
- Primary Care Development Corporation’s Mission 101
- Beyond the Office Visit: Integrating Lifestyle Medicine, Patient Education, and Primary Care
- Bridging the Rural Dental Gap: “State of the State” on Oral Health Access in Pennsylvania
- Connected Communities, Healthier Pennsylvanians: Leverage Health Information Exchange and PA Navigate to Advance Rural Healthcare
Conference programming concludes with closing reflections by IUP Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Lara Luetkehans and Kinneer.
About The Presenters
Secretary Valerie Arkoosh
Secretary Arkoosh, a physician and public health professional, was appointed to lead the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services by Governor Josh Shapiro in January 2023. She officially became secretary on June 29, 2023.
The mission of the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services is to assist Pennsylvanians in leading safe, healthy, and productive lives through equitable, trauma-informed, and outcome-focused services while being an accountable steward of commonwealth resources. Its offices include the Office of Child Development and Early Learning; Office of Children, Youth, and Families; Office of Developmental Programs; Office of Income Maintenance; Office of Long-Term Living; Office of Medical Assistance Programs; Mental Health & Substance Abuse Services; and Office of Administration.
Prior to her current position, Secretary Arkoosh served on the Montgomery County Board of Commissioners. As commission chair, Secretary Arkoosh was committed to strengthening services for children, veterans, and seniors. She led the efforts to eliminate street homelessness of veterans and streamline delivery of human services. Recognizing the need for a strong, supported workforce in executing these goals, she instituted a $15 minimum wage and gender-neutral paid parental leave for Montgomery County employees. Drawing on her background as a physician, she oversaw a multi-pronged, integrated response to the opioid overdose epidemic, including issuing a standing order in 2015 to enable participating pharmacies in Montgomery County to dispense the overdose antidote naloxone at the request of any member of the public.
As a physician and public health professional, Secretary Arkoosh was at the center of Montgomery County’s efforts to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, leading a data- and science-driven approach to the unprecedented challenge. Arkoosh’s leadership was praised during the county’s response, especially her transparency and public communication throughout the pandemic. Secretary Arkoosh is also a staunch advocate for maternal health and reproductive rights, and she serves on the Pennsylvania Maternal Mortality Review Committee.
Upon obtaining her master of public health in 2007, she became deeply engaged in the national effort to achieve comprehensive health care reform. She led the National Physicians Alliance, a national nonprofit organization of physicians who, putting their patients before profits, joined a broad-based nationwide coalition for reform. During this time, she developed policy and legislative strategy, and promoted public engagement in Washington, DC, Pennsylvania, and throughout the country. Secretary Arkoosh maintains comprehensive knowledge of the implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and its impact on individuals and the health care system.
Prior to stepping into public service, Secretary Arkoosh was professor of clinical anesthesiology and clinical obstetrics and gynecology at the Perelman School of Medicine of the University of Pennsylvania. Arkoosh is a graduate of the University of Nebraska College of Medicine and received a master of public health from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. She performed her residency at Jefferson Medical College in anesthesiology with a special focus in obstetrics. She has an undergraduate degree in economics from Northwestern University.
Secretary Arkoosh lives in Springfield Township, Montgomery County, with her husband and their three children.
Secretary Debra Bogen
Prior to her current position, Secretary Bogen was the director of the Allegheny County Health Department, where she and her staff stayed on top of the pandemic and provided consistent, measured, and common-sense information to the public while working closely with many stakeholders in the county.
Prior to that appointment, she was a member of the Pittsburgh region medical and research community for more than two decades. She held a primary academic appointment as professor of pediatrics at the University of Pittsburgh and secondary appointments in psychiatry and clinical and translational science. Secretary Bogen also served as the vice chair of education for the Department of Pediatrics at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh. She dedicated her career as a pediatrician to caring for children and families impacted by social inequities. Her clinical research focused on the impact of mental health and substance use on families.
Secretary Bogen earned her medical degree from the University of Colorado School of Medicine and completed both her pediatric residency and general academic pediatrics fellowship at Johns Hopkins Hospital. She was one of the founders of the Mid-Atlantic Mothers’ Milk Bank and served as the organization’s volunteer medical director until assuming her role at the state.
Jennifer Gilburg
Deputy Secretary Gilburg joined the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development in September 2023 as deputy secretary of technology and entrepreneurship. She has decades of experience in technology and advanced manufacturing in the private sector. She has been at the forefront of such high-growth technologies as data security and artificial intelligence and has worked in advanced technologies for the automotive, medical, and robotics industries.
Most recently, she served as vice president of business development for a developer of AI-driven technology for use in autonomous vehicles and robotics. As deputy secretary of technology and entrepreneurship, she focuses on implementing the Shapiro Administration’s and DCED’s vision of attracting, fostering, and investing in people and companies focused on technology and innovation across multiple sectors and throughout the state. She has an undergraduate degree from Syracuse University and a master’s degree in management from Villanova University.
Brinna Ludwig
In her role as program director for Pennsylvania’s Rural Health Transformation Plan within the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services, Director Ludwig helps to lead implementation of the commonwealth’s rural health transformation work and coordinates efforts focused on strengthening health care access, delivery, and sustainability in rural Pennsylvania.
Since its founding in 1875, IUP has evolved from a teacher-training institution into a doctoral research university recognized for its commitment to student success and achievement. IUP’s Impact 150 comprehensive campaign is designed to honor a legacy of educational excellence while looking toward a future of innovation, public service, and leadership in healthcare education, including the first college of osteopathic medicine at a public university in the commonwealth.