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Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Access

Re-Imagining Rural Health: Themes, Concepts, and Next Steps from the CMS Innovation Center "Hackathon" Series
Summarizes themes that emerged from Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Innovation Center's August 2024 Rural Health Hackathons, which aimed to inform potential payment and service delivery model development and to identify innovative solutions to address the access, care delivery, and workforce needs of rural, Tribal, frontier, and geographically isolated areas communities. Describes lessons learned from previous Innovation Center models focused on rural health and how these lessons were applied during the development of new models. Outlines potential areas for the Innovation Center to explore to advance health in rural, Tribal, frontier, and geographically isolated areas.
Date: 11/2024
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
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A Cross-Sectional Study of Stigma Towards Opioid Users among Rural Law Enforcement and Community Members in Tennessee
Examines stigma toward people who use opioids among 48 law enforcement officers (LEOs) and 393 community members in rural Tennessee. Compares perceptions of opioid use and opioid user demographics among LEOs and community members, including data on attitudes related to dangerousness, blame, social distance, and fatalism. Discusses the effects of stigma on access to harm reduction and treatment for opioid use disorder.
Author(s): Kahler W. Stone, Gabrielle M. Chesak, Angela S. Bowman, Michael Ayalon, Cynthia Chafin
Citation: Harm Reduction Journal, 21, 195
Date: 11/2024
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How Emergency Departments Are Responding to the Opioid Crisis: Results from a Statewide Survey in Kentucky
Examines hospital emergency departments (EDs) in Kentucky and their substance use disorder (SUD) services. Utilizes 2023 survey data from ED directors and discusses themes such as use of buprenorphine, referrals to community providers, social work services, screening processes, care continuity and more. Includes feedback about access to and availability of SUD services in rural areas.
Author(s): Olivia K. Sugarman, Samantha J. Harris, Lauren Byrne, et al.
Citation: Addiction Science & Clinical Practice, 19, 78
Date: 11/2024
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Community Responses and Adaptations Following the Closure of a Rural Pharmacy and Primary Care Facility
Uses interviews with 26 community members to identify the impact of a pharmacy and primary healthcare facility closure in a rural Pennsylvania community. Discusses challenges for vulnerable populations, distance to care, social networks, delayed treatment, emergency medical services, alternative medicine, and more.
Author(s): Hazel Velasco Palacios, Kristina Brant, Danielle Rhubart, Jorden Jackson
Citation: Journal of Rural Health 41(2), e12896
Date: 11/2024
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New Mexico State Health Assessment
Assesses the health status of New Mexicans, identifies health needs and priorities, and details actions and strategies supporting public health in New Mexico. Highlights rural and tribal health and access disparities for select topics, including COVID-19, missing and murdered indigenous people, geographic access to healthcare and other services, and more.
Date: 11/2024
Sponsoring organization: New Mexico Department of Health
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Impacts of Telehealth on Rural Health Care Access
Policy brief highlighting the significance and effectiveness of telehealth. Includes analysis of current telehealth policies for Medicaid, Medicare, and private payers, and examines COVID-19 impacts on telehealth. Offers policy recommendations to enhance adoption and efficacy of telehealth services, particularly in rural areas.
Date: 11/2024
Sponsoring organization: National Rural Health Association
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Growing the Rural Physician Workforce: Decades of Federal Funding Impacts Rural Graduate Medical Education
A historical review of graduate medical education funding and its relationship to the supply of rural physicians. Highlights recent federal funding and policies aimed at addressing the geographic maldistribution of physicians.
Author(s): Kay Miller Temple
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 11/2024
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Expanding Telehealth Services and Access for Successful Maternal Care
A podcast episode that discusses maternal telehealth in Minnesota and telehealth programs that focus on reaching rural parts of the state. Features a conversation with Dr. Chris DeRienzo, podcast host, and Dr. Johnna Nynas, a practicing obstetrician/gynecologist (OB/GYN) at Sanford Health Bemidji.
Author(s): Tom Haederle, Chris DeRienzo
Date: 11/2024
Sponsoring organization: American Hospital Association
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Reach, Adoption, Implementation, and Sustainability of the Mobile Health for Migrant Health (mHealth-4-Mhealth) Program: Nebraska, 2022‒2023
Assesses a mobile COVID-19 screening and resource sharing program for rural migrant families in Nebraska. Discusses the program's attempt to overcome barriers to healthcare for rural residents and migrants in those rural communities.
Author(s): Russell J. McCulloh, Ellen Kerns, Chad Abresch, et al.
Citation: American Journal of Public Health, 114(11), 1212-1216
Date: 11/2024
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Increasing Vaccine Confidence in Rural Communities of South-Central Kentucky
Provides educational resources, data, and advice for community leaders and healthcare professionals to promote vaccine confidence in rural south-central Kentucky. The included toolkit provides in-depth discussion of rural attitudes toward vaccination, strategies for effective communication, and information on rural vaccination disparities.
Additional links: Getting to "YES" for Routine Vaccines: A Toolkit to Increase Vaccine Confidence for Rural Communities in Kentucky
Date: 11/2024
Sponsoring organization: American Lung Association
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