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Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Access

Meals on Wheels and Rural Communities, with Carter Florence and Shon Gress
An episode of the Exploring Rural Health podcast featuring Carter Florence, DrPH, MPH, Vice President of Programs with Meals on Wheels America, and Shon Gress, CEO and Executive Director of Meals on Wheels Guernsey County. Focuses on the benefits of the program, the impact of braided funding, and how rural stakeholders can get involved.
Date: 08/2023
Type: Audio
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Where You Live Matters: Maternity Care Deserts and the Crisis of Access and Equity
Provides interactive state-by-state data on maternity care deserts in the U.S. Focuses on access, distance to maternity care, availability of family planning services, disparities in prenatal care, chronic health conditions and preterm birth, policy solutions, and more. Includes county-level maps of data as well as accompanying state summaries, infographics, and downloadable reports.
Date: 08/2023
Type: Website
Sponsoring organization: March of Dimes
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Home-Based Pulmonary Rehabilitation
Highlights a model for delivering home-based pulmonary rehabilitation care for older rural veterans. Presents challenges facing rural veterans with pulmonary diseases, such as COPD, and explores methods for at-home rehabilitation via a 12-week treatment plan.
Additional links: One-page Overview
Date: 07/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Veterans Health Administration's Office of Rural Health
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Improving the Social Determinants of Health in Rural America Through Medicaid Section 1115 Waivers
Policy brief discussing how Medicaid Section 1115 waivers can allow states to modify the social determinants of health in rural areas through pilot programs, delivery system reform, or enhanced benefit packages. Highlights existing Section 1115 waiver programs and recently approved and renewed waivers, as well as challenges related to improving health-related social needs and access to services in rural areas. Offers policy recommendations to improve health equity in rural areas through Medicaid programs.
Author(s): Alexandra Zimmerman
Date: 07/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Rural Health Association
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Assisting Rural Consumers: Webinar Slides
Provides an overview of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid's (CMS) frameworks for health equity and advancing health equity in rural, tribal, and geographically isolated communities. Outlines barriers for healthcare consumers living in rural areas, and offers tactics for healthcare assisters and navigators who help rural populations make healthcare decisions.
Date: 07/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
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COVID-19 Impact on Dental Service Delivery, Financing, Regulation, and Education Systems: An Environmental Scan
Describes the immediate and longer-term impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on dental care delivery, regulation, education, and finance. Mentions rural throughout.
Author(s): Margaret Langelier, Aubri Kottek, Theekshana Fernando, et al.
Date: 07/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Oral Health Workforce Research Center
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Leveraging Policy Changes Made in Response to COVID-19 to Advance Telehealth and Novel Treatment Approaches for People Who Use Opioids: Qualitative Perspective from Two Rural North Carolina Communities
Results of interviews with 10 providers of healthcare and supportive services for people who use opioids in rural counties in North Carolina. Discusses topics including COVID-19's influence on telehealth, models for opioid treatment delivery in rural areas, and common barriers to service access. Identifies strategies for facilitating services in rural areas, including expanded telehealth access and implementation of other service delivery models.
Author(s): Hillary Chen, Brandon A. Knettel, Lisa Macon Harrison, et al.
Citation: North Carolina Medical Journal, 84(5), 54-60
Date: 07/2023
Type: Document
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North Dakota's Significant Rural Health Needs as Identified by Critical Access Hospital Community Health Needs Assessments: 2020-2022 Aggregate Results for Rural North Dakota Hospitals
Report highlights the results of community health needs assessments of North Dakota's Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs) from 2020 to 2022. Identifies the most pressing healthcare needs in ND's rural communities.
Author(s): Kylie Nissen, Holly Long
Date: 07/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: University of North Dakota Center for Rural Health
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On-Farm Health Screening Needs of Immigrant Dairy Workers
Webinar recording discussing a study evaluating the health needs of immigrant dairy workers in Texas as well as health risk screenings on the farm. Describes barriers to healthcare including access, childcare, leave from work, language barriers, and more. Transcript is available by clicking the three dots under the video.
Date: 07/2023
Type: Video/Multimedia
Sponsoring organization: Network of the National Library of Medicine
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Community Forums as Amplifiers of Communities' Voices: Isolated Communities in Puerto Rico
Highlights a study on health-related issues in isolated communities in Puerto Rico. Utilizes a community forum to identify health-related issues, such as primary care and mental health access, social determinants of health, emergency preparedness, and COVID-19 vaccinations, among other measures.
Author(s): Yashira M. Sánchez Colón, Edna Acosta Pérez, Mayra L. Roubert Rivera, et al.
Citation: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 20(14), 6335
Date: 07/2023
Type: Document
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