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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Access

The Health Care Perceptions of Low-income Coloradans
Discusses the results from a 2016 survey regarding perceptions of healthcare available to low-income residents in Colorado. Includes issue briefs analyzing data for rural Coloradans and low-income Coloradans of color.
Date: 01/2018
Type: Website
Sponsoring organization: Colorado Health Foundation
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Reinventing Rural Health Care: A Case Study of Seven Upper Midwest States
Examines the state of rural healthcare in seven states - Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming - and uses the findings to determine the impact of existing federal policies, understand ongoing healthcare challenges, and identify opportunities for improvement in rural healthcare access and delivery. Addresses rightsizing healthcare services to fit community needs, creating rural funding mechanisms, building and supporting the primary care physician workforce, and expanding telemedicine services. Analysis is based on interviews with over 90 national thought leaders and key stakeholders.
Additional links: Infographic, Summary – Rural Health Care: Lessons Learned
Date: 01/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Bipartisan Policy Center
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Range Matters: Rural Averages Can Conceal Important Information
Findings brief showing how research focusing on averages without considering data range can conceal important information about average rural hospital profitability, distance between hospitals, and HIV prevalence by county.
Author(s): Meagan Clawar, Kristie Thompson, George H. Pink
Date: 01/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: North Carolina Rural Health Research Program
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Access to Care: Populations in Counties with No FQHC, RHC, or Acute Care Hospital
Findings brief focusing on the 3 main facility types providing primary care in rural areas and examining how many people will likely have limited access to primary care based on their locations. Includes statistics on numbers of people living in counties without these facilities, with breakdowns by 9 census divisions.
Author(s): Meagan Clawar, Randy Randolph, Kristie Thompson, George H. Pink
Date: 01/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: North Carolina Rural Health Research Program
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Health Policy Brief: Connections Between Income and Health
Presents a policy brief on income as a factor in health outcomes for people in Ohio. Looks at how healthcare access, health behavior, and overall health outcomes are related to individual and community income. Includes county-by-county income data.
Date: 01/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Health Policy Institute of Ohio
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Introduction to Multi-Sector Intersections and Collaborations to Advance Health Equity
Illustrates how state and local public health departments can partner with non-public health governmental sectors - agriculture, economy, education, environment, housing, justice, and transportation - to promote improving health for all people.
Date: 2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Association of State and Territorial Health Officials
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Transforming Health Care from the Ground Up
Describes two examples of innovation driven by doctors, nurses, administrators, entrepreneurs, and patients involving a major transformation of healthcare delivery. One example was an initiative developed through the University of Mississippi Medical Center where a telehealth network was created to increase patient access to care in rural areas with a focus on Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs).
Author(s): Vijay Govindarajan, Ravi Ramamurti
Citation: Harvard Business Review
Date: 2018
Type: Document
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The Impact of the Vermont Support and Services at Home Program on Healthcare Expenditures
The Support and Services at Home (SASH) program helps rural and urban program participants access healthcare and support services in order to maintain their health and age securely and safely in their homes. Report estimates the impact of the Vermont SASH program on Medicare expenditures.
Author(s): Amy Kandilov, Vince Keyes, Martijn van Hasselt, et al.
Citation: Cityscape, 20(2)
Date: 2018
Type: Document
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The Importance of Local Foods to Users of Food Pantries in Accessible Rural Alaska
Discusses how home-grown foods and wild protein enhance food security in a group of rural, mostly non-Native Alaska communities accessible by ground transportation. Compares the status of Alaska Natives with non-Natives, and explores the harmful effects of food insecurity, in terms of obesity, child development, and general health.
Author(s): Tracey Kathleen Burke, Cara Durr, David Reamer
Citation: Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development, 8(1), 53-69
Date: 2018
Type: Document
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Understanding Disparities in Access to Genomic Medicine: Proceedings of a Workshop
Reports on a workshop regarding healthcare disparities in precision health and genetics-based services, which can be used to customize patient treatment, diagnoses, and disease prevention strategies. Includes a section focused on challenges for rural communities starting on page 19.
Author(s): Board on Health Sciences Policy, Roundtable on Genomics and Precision Health
Date: 2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Health and Medicine Division (HMD), National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
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