Achieving Health Equity in Rural Appalachia

Webinar Information

Live Webinar on February 18, 2022 at 10am PST. Recording to follow. 

The Appalachian region is much larger than most people realize. It is comprised of the entire state of West Virginia plus parts of 12 other states. More than 25 million people live in the Appalachian region.  A study released in 2017 by the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) showed that all chronic diseases are higher in the Appalachian region than the rest of the USA.

The Appalachian region has a long history of exploitation by outsiders of the natural resources that have been abundant in this area. This has created much distrust by people who live in the region. There are many health and socio-economic issues, and needs are great in Appalachia.  This presentation explores the personal journey of one healthcare professional’s journey in cultural competence development and the importance that cultural competence and cultural humility have in achieving health equity in marginalized populations.

The Health Equity Webinar Series is a free online webinar series designed to showcase dynamic work being accomplished to enhance health equity opportunities. This series discusses different innovative implementations, strategies, best practices, success stories, and experiences impacting health equity in communities served with public health professionals around the nation. 

Health Equity Webinars are hosted live on the third Friday of each month at 10am PST.   

To join the live session, please enroll in the course before 10am PST on the day of the webinar. All Health Equity sessions are recorded. If you enroll after the live webinar session has ended, the course will contain a video recording of the live session you can watch instead. Please note, it may take up to one month for the recording to become available.

Learning Objectives:

Upon completing this webinar, participants will be able to:

  1. Discover Value of Cultural Competence/Cultural Humility to Achieving Health Equity
  2. Analyze Progressive Journey of Developing Ongoing Cultural Competence
  3. Discuss Health Disparities in Appalachian Region
  4. Evaluate Need for Cultural Competence Framework to Improve Health Disparities in Marginalized Communities such as Appalachia


Target Audience:

  • Public health professionals
  • Community members 
  • Students


Duration: ~ 1 hour 

Continuing Education: N/A

Speakers: Robyn Seamon, MA, BSN, RN

About the Speakers

Robyn Seamon, MA, BSN, RN 

Robyn is a Certified Transcultural Nurse who is passionate about seeing the health of people radically transformed in the Rural Appalachian Region. Facilitating improvement in the high rates of health disparities in the Appalachian Region is her heartfelt desire. As a Registered Nurse for over 35 years, she has had many diverse experiences, including hospital nursing, home health and hospice, a startup clinic at a homeless shelter, and various volunteer experiences. 

Robyn holds a Master of Arts degree in Appalachian Studies. She is the owner of Appalachian Healthcare Training & Consulting and regularly provides professional development workshops and consultation services. Robyn serves on several workgroups at NCDHHS focused on Historical Marginalized Populations and COVID-19. Robyn is passionate about utilizing her transcultural knowledge to continue to see improvement in health equity in marginalized, rural populations. 

Course Content

  1. 01

    • Download Calendar Reminder

    • Health Equity Series Welcome

    • Webinar Description and Presenter Bios

    • Demographic Survey

    • Live Webinar on February 18, 2022 at 10am PST

    • Webinar Replay

    • Course Evaluation

    • Save the Date for Next Month's Health Equity Webinar

This webinar is sponsored by:

  • NPHA
  • NVPHTC