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Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Access

Exploring Environmental Measures in Disability: Using Google Earth and Street View to Conduct Remote Assessments of Access and Participation in Urban and Rural Communities
Presents two studies which use digital maps and street-level imagery to investigate physical accessibility in rural and urban communities. Analyzes pathway usability, building access, and community participation of people using personal mobility devices, with comparisons by community population size. Discusses procedures, applications, and limitations of the use of digital street-level imagery for accessibility research.
Author(s): Tom Seekins, Meg A. Traci, Emily C. Hicks
Citation: Frontiers in Rehabilitation Sciences, 3, 879193
Date: 08/2022
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Agencies Improving Rural Healthcare in TX
Webinar describing demographic characteristics and common health disparities of rural residents both in Texas and nationally. Highlights the distribution of rural Texas health facilities. Notes organization and agencies working in rural healthcare nationally and within Texas. Offers resources for further development of rural healthcare knowledge. See video description for transcript.
Date: 08/2022
Sponsoring organization: University of Texas at Arlington Center for Rural Health and Nursing
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Interventions for Increasing Digital Equity and Access (IDEA) Among Rural Patients Who Smoke: Study Protocol for a Pragmatic Randomized Pilot Trial
Examines digital access and literacy interventions that facilitate online evidence-based smoking cessation treatment (EBCT) for rural adults. Provides methodology and components of 3 different EBCT interventions aimed at participants in a Midwestern community-based health system. Includes feedback from a rural community advisory committee (CAC) on the study protocol.
Author(s): Christi Patten, Tabetha Brockman, Sydney Kelpin, et al.
Citation: Contemporary Clinical Trials, 119, 106838
Date: 08/2022
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Advisory Committee on Interdisciplinary, Community-Based Linkages (ACICBL) Meeting Minutes, August 26, 2022
Summarizes the Advisory Committee on Interdisciplinary, Community-Based Linkages (ACICBL) meeting held on August 26, 2022. Includes updates from the Bureau of Health Workforce and a discussion on the Geriatric Academic Career Award program (GACA) and Geriatric Workforce Enhancement Program (GWEP). Includes rural references throughout.
Date: 08/2022
Sponsoring organization: Advisory Committee on Interdisciplinary Community-Based Linkages
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Association of Rurality, Race and Ethnicity, and Socioeconomic Status With the Surgical Management of Colon Cancer and Postoperative Outcomes Among Medicare Beneficiaries
Results of a study of 57,710 fee-for-service Medicare beneficiaries 65 years or older diagnosed with colon cancer between April 2016, and September 2018, with follow-up until December 2018. Features demographics and statistics with breakdowns by metropolitan, micropolitan, or small town/rural location.
Author(s): Niveditta Ramkumar, Carrie H. Colla, Qianfei Wang, et al.
Citation: JAMA Network Open, 5(8), e2229247
Date: 08/2022
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Health Insurance Marketplaces: Issuer Participation Trends in Non-Metropolitan Places, 2014-22
Policy brief examining the changes in Health Insurance Marketplace (HIM) plan issuers from 2014-2022. Presents statistics on the average number of issuers per county in each year for metropolitan, micropolitan, and noncore counties and by region.
Author(s): Eliot Jost, Abigail Barker, Leah Kemper, et al.
Date: 08/2022
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
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Update on Rural Independently Owned Pharmacy Closures in the United States, 2003-2021
Provides updated information on independently owned rural pharmacy closures from 2003 to 2021. Compares the annual retail pharmacy counts and percent change in the number of pharmacies by pharmacy type and metropolitan, micropolitan, and noncore county status. Builds on past publications from RUPRI regarding rural pharmacy closures.
Author(s): Edmer Lazaro, Fred Ullrich, Keith J. Mueller
Date: 08/2022
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
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Long Drives and Red Tape: Mapping Rural Veteran Access to Primary Care Using Causal-Loop Diagramming
Explores the factors that contribute to barriers to primary care for rural veterans. Discusses how factors such as physical distance to VA facilities, the efficacy of VA programs, and other factors combine to affect levels of primary care access for veterans in rural areas.
Author(s): Erin S. Kenzie, Mary Patzel, Erik Nelson, et al.
Citation: BMC Public Health, 22, 1075
Date: 08/2022
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Preserving Independence among Under-Resourced Older Adults in the Southeastern United States: Existing Barriers and Potential Strategies for Research
Literature review examining barriers to independent aging in the Southeast, including physical, mental, and social challenges related to chronic conditions, health disparities, and access to care. Includes a section on barriers for older adults in rural areas of the Southeast.
Author(s): Ene M. Enogela, Taylor Buchanan, Christy S. Carter, et al.
Citation: International Journal for Equity in Health, 21, 119
Date: 08/2022
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Health Panel Comment Letter – Medicare Advantage Program
Offers comments in response to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Request for Information on various aspects of the Medicare Advantage (MA) program. Presents a rural perspective on the MA program and discusses health equity in the MA program, expanding access to care, and value-based contracting. Includes data on the proportion of MA plans offering supplemental benefits in noncore, micropolitan, and metropolitan counties in 2020.
Date: 08/2022
Sponsoring organization: Rural Policy Research Institute Rural Health Panel
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