Sanford to address solutions to strengthen rural workforce
| March 2, 2026 |
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SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — Sanford Health is joining national health care leaders this week in Texas for one of the country’s premier health care leadership events to focus on real-world strategies to address today’s most pressing challenges.
ACHE 2026 Congress on Healthcare Leadership takes place today through March 4 in Houston and gathers together more than 7,000 leaders from the health care community. Congress offers attendees countless opportunities to innovate, collaborate, grow and transform by having access to world-class thought leadership, insights and perspectives from a wide array of interprofessional leaders on a variety of hot topics and industry trends.
Jeremy Cauwels, M.D., chief medical officer at Sanford Health, is a featured panelist in a session that focuses on identifying and addressing critical workforce shortages in rural health care. Attendees will examine current challenges, explore scalable solutions and discuss ways to optimize existing resources and roles. The session entitled, Leadership Insights: Strengthening the Rural Healthcare Workforce—Strategies for Sustainable Growth, will highlight real-world examples of capacity-building efforts that improve care access and delivery in underserved rural areas.
Joining Cauwels on the panel are John Fryer, FACHE, chief growth and corporate development officer at Lumeris and Charlene MacDonald, president and CEO of the Federation of American Hospitals. Moderating the discussion is Richard Greenhill, DHA, FACHE, principal and founder of SmartSigma AI.
“We serve patients across 320,000 square miles, and nearly all of them live in counties that are federally designated shortage areas. That is why we are investing in deliberate workforce initiatives and innovative care delivery models,” said Cauwels. “We are focused on bringing care closer to patients through virtual models, strengthening the workforce pipeline and using technology to extend clinical capacity.”
Through a $300 million philanthropic investment from Denny Sanford, Sanford Health will have a total of 40 residency and fellowship programs by 2027, training more than 400 residents and fellows annually.
AI tools are also helping to support Sanford Health providers by improving job satisfaction. Sanford Health currently has physicians participating in an ambient listening technology pilot program, with 95% reporting reduced cognitive burden and 100% reporting they would be disappointed if they could no longer use the tool. Reducing documentation time allows clinicians to focus more fully on patient care — and in some settings, see more patients
Born in South Dakota and raised in northwest Iowa, Cauwels has bachelor’s degrees in chemistry and biology from the University of Northern Iowa and a medical degree from the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine. He completed his residency and a chief resident year at the University of Kansas in Kansas City, Kansas. He is a fellow of the American College of Physicians and the Society of Hospital Medicine.
About Sanford Health
Sanford Health, the largest rural health system in the United States, is dedicated to transforming the health care experience and providing access to world-class health care in America’s heartland. Headquartered in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, the organization has 55,000 employees and serves more than 2 million patients and nearly 415,000 health plan members across the upper Midwest including South Dakota, North Dakota, Minnesota, Wyoming, Iowa, Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. The integrated nonprofit health system includes a network of 58 hospitals, 289 clinic locations, 145 senior care communities, 4,500 physicians and advanced practice providers and 1,100 active clinical trials and studies. The organization’s transformational virtual care initiative brings patients closer to care with access to nearly 80 specialties. More than 400 residents and fellows are trained each year through graduate medical education with Sanford Health fully funding and supporting 29 of the 40 available programs. Sanford Health also includes Lewis Drug, a pharmacy and retail chain with 60 locations in three states and nearly 190 pharmacists. Learn more about Sanford Health’s commitment to shaping the future of rural health care across the lifespan at sanfordhealth.org or Sanford Health News.
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