Skip to content
MarketScale
‹ Back to IndustriesHealthcare

Can’t Afford It, Can’t Live Without It: the Decline of Rural Hospitals

Skyrocketing healthcare expenses in America are the cause of financial pain for many, and rural communities are suffering from these rising prices and the cost is forcing many small hospitals, some the only one for miles, to shut their doors forever. In today’s podcast, Kevin Campbell, CFO and founding partner of DTA Associates, shared…

This story was produced through MarketScale. See how Healthcare teams put it to work with Executive Thought Leadership.

Share

Get featured

Want to get featured in MarketScale Healthcare?

Create a free MarketScale workspace and get your company's expertise featured across our Healthcare coverage. No credit card, no demo required.

Request an invite

Skyrocketing healthcare expenses in America are the cause of financial pain for many, and rural communities are suffering from these rising prices and the cost is forcing many small hospitals, some the only one for miles, to shut their doors forever. In today’s podcast, Kevin Campbell, CFO and founding partner of DTA Associates, shared his perspective on how the decline of these hospitals is affecting local communities.

“There’s no one problem we can point to that is causing all this,” Campbell said, explaining that prescription prices, labor costs, cost of treatments and end of life care are all factors in the financial challenges facing small healthcare organizations.

A hospital that serves a tiny population doesn’t have the patient volume, which would allow them to purchase more efficient machines and services. This lack of scale leads to declining reimbursements, trapping the organizations in a Catch-22 situation.

Campbell mentioned that when a community hospital shutters, it’s not just a problem for those who need help during an emergency. “These hospitals are a source of pride for these communities.” They’re also usually a significant employer, so when one shuts down, it can devastate a town.

So what can help these small hospitals survive? Data. While not a silver bullet, business intelligence like the affordable kind DTA provides, allows these organizations to improve their performance.

“If you don’t know how you’re performing because you can’t get the data together, how are these executives and administrators supposed to make good decisions?” Campbell explained that by leveraging data, hospitals he works with make real progress month by month, allowing them to keep the doors open to the community.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Healthcare Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @HealthMKSL

Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale

LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Your experts belong here

Every story in MarketScale Healthcare starts with a company putting its clinicians, service-line leaders, and field engineers on the record. Buyers are already reading this topic. The only question is whose experts they find.

Service-line buyers vet vendors quietly, and your clinicians become the proof they find while doing it.

Get your team featuredSee how it works15 minutes, straight to a calendar.

Follow Healthcare Insights

Get new expert content in your inbox.

Healthcare: are you visible to AI?

Before they reach out, Healthcare buyers ask AI engines which vendors to trust. See how AI describes your company today, and where competitors show up instead.

Free workspace

You just read one Healthcare expert. Your company is full of them.

This article was produced through MarketScale. The same platform turns your clinicians, service-line leaders, and field engineers into the articles, video, and social content Healthcare buyers are searching for. Create a free workspace and see it with your own people. No credit card, no demo required.

NPS +73 · 1,000+ creators · 38+ countries

What you get, free

Your own MarketScale Studio workspace
One video edit a month, on us
AI writing, editing, and publishing tools
In-platform coaching to learn the system

More Healthcare Insights

Dr. Dana Rosencranz - Cancer Survivor and Chief Medical Physicist

Dr. Dana Rosencranz - Cancer Survivor and Chief Medical Physicist

Dr. Dana Rosencranz, Chief Medical Physicist at Texas Oncology, brings both professional expertise and personal experience as a breast cancer survivor to her role in advancing cancer care. Over 23 years at Texas Oncology, she champions technology adoption and AI integration in oncology while emphasizing the importance of human oversight in clinical applications.

  • 01Dr. Rosencranz is a five-year breast cancer survivor whose personal experience informs her approach to patient empathy and personalized care delivery.
  • 02AI applications in oncology like auto-contouring and treatment planning show significant advancement potential, but require consistent human leadership and oversight.
  • 03Texas Oncology reaches many demographics, including rural areas where travel to urban centers is hard, while staying current with the highest technology available.

Sep 11, 2026

OpenAI Links ChatGPT to Epic EHRs, Adds Health Data Plugin

OpenAI Links ChatGPT to Epic EHRs, Adds Health Data Plugin

OpenAI announced a ChatGPT for Healthcare integration with Epic EHRs and a plugin linking to nine public healthcare data sources, Healthcare IT News reported Sept. 4, 2026. UCSF Health is piloting the EHR integration, according to OpenAI.

  • 01Some health systems can embed ChatGPT for Healthcare within Epic screens, letting staff pull visit notes, lab results, medications, and specialist records without leaving the EHR.
  • 02OpenAI launched a Healthcare Public Data plugin linking to nine sources, including ClinicalTrials.gov, CMS Coverage, RxNorm, DailyMed, and PubMed, available to eligible U.S. ChatGPT for Clinicians users.
  • 03Health IT teams should verify which patient data fields are exposed, whether prompts and outputs generate audit logs, and assess which of the nine plugin data sources align with their specialty mix before expanding beyond pilot programs.

Sep 11, 2026

Sentara put a predictive model inside Epic’s nursing workflow

Sentara put a predictive model inside Epic’s nursing workflow

Sentara embedded a predictive risk model into Epic and redesigned nursing workflows, reducing hospital-onset MRSA bacteremia by about 45%, according to Healthcare IT News. Healthcare IT News also reported that DaVita’s CIO said embedding AI-powered insights into clinical workflows, not simply collecting more data, is helping clinicians coordinate care. Together, the examples point to a repeatable pattern: model plus workflow, not model plus dashboard.

  • 01According to Healthcare IT News, Sentara reduced hospital-onset MRSA bacteremia by about 45% after embedding a predictive risk model into Epic and redesigning nursing workflows.
  • 02More than half (56%) of respondents cited software and technology as one of their top three strategic priorities, and around 75% expected spending growth to continue over the next 12 months.

Sep 11, 2026

Explore More Healthcare Insights

Read more expert perspectives from across Healthcare.

Browse Healthcare Hub

For B2B teams

Your experts could be publishing here

Stories like this one run on content MarketScale captures from real practitioners. See how your team's expertise becomes coverage in Healthcare and beyond.

Book a 15-minute demo

Or call us. No forms required. We pick up. 214-945-2512