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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Access

Creating Opportunity and Prosperity Through Strengthening Rural-Urban Connections
Highlights examples in which regional development organizations can benefit from linking rural regions with urban centers. Includes information on broadband development and its implication for improving access to healthcare services.
Author(s): Brian Dabson, Erin Meyers
Date: 05/2015
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Association of Development Organizations
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Health, United States, 2014: With Special Feature on Adults Aged 55-64
Presents an annual overview of national trends in health statistics. Covers health status and determinants, healthcare utilization, access, and expenditures. Includes data on rural areas - see index under "Metropolitan/nonmetropolitan data." 2014 edition includes a special section on adults aged 55-64, covering health status, health behaviors, health insurance coverage, healthcare utilization, and more.
Date: 05/2015
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Center for Health Statistics
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Transportation Update: Where We've Gone and What We've Learned
Update to the 2005 report, The Current State of Transportation for People with Disabilities in the United States. Chapter 7 discusses the gaps and barriers in transit services in rural areas and identifies funding sources for rural transportation as well as effective strategies to help the rural population of people with disabilities access healthcare, employment, and participate in the community.
Date: 05/2015
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Council on Disability
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The Persistent Health Care Access Gap for Children Living in Poverty: Will the Health Technology Revolution Level the Playing Field?
Discusses the need for and challenges to expanding healthcare technology for medically underserved children living in poverty stricken areas and rural areas. Highlights the potential to improve access to healthcare and health outcomes through the use of electronic health records (EHRs), telehealth, mobile medical clinics and diagnostic tools, and mobile communication devices. Offers recommendations for accelerating the use of technology in rural and underserved areas.
Date: 04/2015
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Children's Health Fund
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Improving Access and Provision of Preventive Oral Health Care for Very Young, Poor, and Low-Income Children Through a New Interdisciplinary Partnership
Describes a demonstration model in which dental care and education was provided by a nurse practitioner-dietitian team to 4,360 Ohio preschool children enrolled in the Women, Infants, and Children program at one urban and one rural site.
Author(s): Diana L. Biordi, Marjet Heitzer, Eric Mundy, et al.
Citation: American Journal of Public Health, 105(Suppl 2), e23-e29
Date: 04/2015
Type: Document
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A Rural Appalachian Faith-Placed Smoking Cessation Intervention
Describes a faith-oriented smoking cessation program comprising 590 smokers in 26 churches located in rural Appalachia. Discusses 3 themes identified by the participants' evaluation of the program including the program's ability to leverage social connections, be conveniently orientated, and to provide financial support for smoking cessation.
Author(s): Nancy E. Schoenberg, Henry E. Bundy, Jordan A. Baeker Bispo, et al.
Citation: Journal of Religion and Health, 54(2), 598-611
Date: 04/2015
Type: Document
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Study of Barriers for Women Veterans to VA Health Care: Final Report
Examines the use, preference, and barriers faced by rural and urban women veterans in accessing Veterans Affairs (VA) healthcare to better understand the challenges in receiving care. Informs Congress regarding the status of healthcare for women veterans.
Date: 04/2015
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
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Improving Access to Noninstitutional Long-Term Care for American Indian Veterans
Describes program models to expand Native American veterans' access to home-based primary care (HBPC), which provides non-institutional long-term care to homebound veterans. Overviews emerging models of HBPC and co-management developed by Veterans Affairs Medical Centers in collaboration with tribes and Indian Health Service facilities. Also includes several models that expanded HBPC access for non-native as well as Native American rural veterans.
Author(s): Betty J. Kramer, Beth Creekmur, Sarah Cote, Debra Saliba
Citation: Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 63(4), 789-796
Date: 04/2015
Type: Document
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Oral Health in Michigan
An overview of oral health in Michigan describing the oral health status of Michigan residents, with information by broad region and by county. Discusses issues related to rural dental health access. Provides data on the dental health workforce, including county-level provider-to-population ratios for dentists and dental hygienists.
Author(s): Margaret Langelier, Simona Surdu
Date: 04/2015
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Center for Health Workforce Studies
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The Oral Health of American Indian and Alaska Native Children Aged 1-5 Years: Results of the 2014 IHS Oral Health Survey
Reports on tooth decay among American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) preschool children. Includes a comparison to tooth decay among other racial/ethnic groups. Also provides information on untreated decay and use of dental sealants.
Author(s): Kathy R. Phipps, Timothy L. Ricks
Date: 04/2015
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Indian Health Service
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