Rural Healthcare Training

The Tennessee Department of Health is offering a Rural Healthcare Training grant opportunity as part of its mission to protect, promote, and improve the health and well-being of all people in Tennessee. With nearly 95% of Tennesseans residing in counties designated as Health Professional Shortage Areas, the initiative aims to address the disparities in rural healthcare by funding efforts that strengthen workforce training and development in underserved areas. The funding originates from shared savings in Medicaid programs, redirected into recommendations from the 2023 Tennessee Rural Health Care Task Force Report, targeting rural healthcare system improvements and provider workforce enhancement. This grant supports a variety of training and professional development programs, including rural preceptorships, rotation programs, accelerated training tracks, and continuing medical education. It is specifically designed to increase the number of qualified healthcare, behavioral health, and dental professionals who are trained and retained within rural Tennessee. It also emphasizes the importance of creating defined career pathways in rural communities and investing in training infrastructure such as telemedicine and service integration. Eligible applicants include rural health care providers, academic institutions, sponsoring organizations for post-graduate and continuing education, Area Health Education Centers, and other entities that facilitate healthcare training, especially for disciplines like family medicine, OB/GYN, nursing, and behavioral health. Applicants must demonstrate a rural training focus and alignment with strategic priorities such as access, prevention, equity, and innovation. Allowable expenses under this opportunity include funding for training program expansion, housing and transportation subsidies for trainees, preceptor development, rural residency development, and support for provider learning communities. Notably, rural residency programs may receive one-time funding of up to $1.5 million, while other program types have specified caps under a larger total allocation of $5,398,250. Proposals will be evaluated based on organizational capacity, alignment with rural training goals, service design, partnerships, and plans for sustainability beyond the grant period. Budgets must be detailed and reasonable, and should include provisions for continuity beyond the state-appropriated funding. Preference will be given to projects that prioritize underserved populations and demonstrate thoughtful impact measurement and management. Key dates include a proposal deadline of October 13, 2025, with funding anticipated to begin on November 1, 2025. A teleconference for interested applicants was scheduled for September 17, 2025, and all questions were due by September 19. Applications must be submitted online as instructed in the RFGP. Questions and official communications should be directed to the Procurement Management Office of the Department of Health.

Prioritize underserved rural populations, especially those with TennCare or uninsured status. Provide clear sustainability and evaluation plans.