Photo by Appalachian Regional Commission .
health facility . To be able to connect through the internet could be a lifesaver for many of these people or certainly help ,” Manchin says . “ Health care is a big issue because of the rural nature of the Appalachian region . Many rural hospitals have had to close due to high cost and lack of staff , so the ARC tries to be effective in several ways in terms of encouraging training in health care fields .”
Part of the ARC ’ s job creation and entrepreneurship initiatives are focused on supporting the creation , growth and access to capital for businesses in the health care sector , which will both expand access to care and diversify local economies . An example of this diversification is Future of Nursing West Virginia , a recent recipient of one of ARC ’ s Partnerships for Opportunity and Workforce and Economic Revitalization , or POWER , grants . POWER grants go toward helping revitalize coal-impacted communities around Appalachia . The major contributors to these efforts are community colleges , hospitals , chambers of commerce and workforce investment boards . Future of Nursing West Virginia uses its grant to help launch and sustain nurse-owned businesses in West Virginia ’ s coal-impacted communities .
“ The best part of this job is my opportunity to go visit not only projects here in West Virginia that the ARC is involved in but also the other 13 states . I am trying to balance my time between learning more about how the ARC works and meeting the staff and also traveling ,” Manchin says . “ I get to visit projects that the ARC is partnering with . It is
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