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Rural Health Information Hub
Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Project Examples: Trauma-informed care

Other Project Examples

funded by the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy funded by the Health Resources Services Administration

Updated/reviewed November 2024

  • Need: To support pregnant and parenting women with a history of substance use, mental health, or co-occurring disorders in rural areas of Montana.
  • Intervention: One Health, a consortium of Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs), developed a team of "recovery doulas" – individuals who are dual-certified as doulas and peer-support specialists. The One Health recovery doula program offers group and individual services to women and their partners from pregnancy through the first years of parenthood.
  • Results: A team of nine recovery doulas (or doulas-in-training) employed by One Health offer services in 13 rural Montana counties. Recovery doulas have provided essential support to women with substance use disorder, survivors of sexual abuse, unhoused individuals, and individuals facing other complex challenges.
funded by the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy

Updated/reviewed August 2024

  • Need: Before 2000, Butte and southwest Montana saw around 1,300 cases of child abuse a year, with only a 20% conviction rate for perpetrators of sexual abuse.
  • Intervention: Multiple agencies in the community came together to address the issue of child abuse by forming the Butte Child Evaluation Center (CEC), a Children's Advocacy Center.
  • Results: During a 3-year grant cycle, over 200 interviews and exams were performed on victims of sexual abuse and the Butte CEC became the first program in Montana to be accredited by the National Children's Alliance.

Updated/reviewed June 2024

  • Need: Clinicians in rural and underserved areas are often unprepared to provide comprehensive medical-forensic examinations for patients who present for care following a sexual assault.
  • Intervention: The MDPH TeleSANE Center uses secure telehealth software to connect sexual assault nurse examiners to clinicians and patients in hospitals across Massachusetts — including four in rural counties — offering expert clinical guidance and support before, during, and after examinations.
  • Results: Clinicians report that the service gives them increased confidence throughout the examination process. To date, the MDPH TeleSANE Center has assisted in the care of over 960 patients.

Added February 2024

  • Need: To support pregnant or new parents in rural Massachusetts affected by substance use or on medication for opioid use.
  • Intervention: This program offers a medical and behavioral health home, providing trauma-informed support before, during, and after childbirth.
  • Results: Six months after enrollment, there was a 20% increase in the number of participants who felt socially connected and a 5% increase in abstinence from all substances.

Updated/reviewed December 2023

  • Need: Agencies in Schoharie County, New York were seeing a widespread trend of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) in the children and families they served.
  • Intervention: The Schoharie ACEs Team was formed as a way to educate rural communities about ACEs, the associated brain science, and ways to build resiliency.
  • Results: The ACEs Team has put on 5 half-day educational conferences, 2 virtual conferences, and 10 trainings for various groups across the region. The team has also trained 3 school districts on trauma-informed care and provided resources for families exposed to trauma.

Updated/reviewed September 2023

  • Need: Improved health outcomes for Monadnock Region, a rural area of New Hampshire.
  • Intervention: A wide-scale effort across multiple sectors is aiming to improve health outcomes throughout the region.
  • Results: Community health trends have been tracked over time, and progress on goals such as increasing the number of residents with healthcare coverage, opportunities for physical activity, access to healthy foods, and smoking cessation has been made.

Updated/reviewed June 2022

  • Need: Improved behavioral health care offerings for a community after losing 5 senior-aged men to suicide.
  • Intervention: A Critical Access Hospital in Yoakum, Texas, created a community-based program focusing on inpatient and outpatient behavioral health care for area residents age 50 and older.
  • Results: A financially-sustainable behavioral health care delivery model demonstrating positive impacts on physical health conditions, healthcare service utilization, and high patient satisfaction rates.

Updated/reviewed November 2020

  • Need: Decrease rates of domestic violence, child sexual abuse, and child neglect for people in remote tribal villages.
  • Intervention: An evidence-based model of traditional culture trains local communities on methods of prevention and treatment for domestic and interpersonal violence.
  • Results: Self-sustaining local system with improved family and spiritual well-being and decreased healthcare access needs.