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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Access

Can Community Paramedicine Improve Health Outcomes in Rural America?
Profiles three community paramedicine programs that serve rural communities in the Midwest, Maine, and Pennsylvania. Describes how community paramedicine can help fill gaps in care in rural communities and improve health outcomes. Identifies challenges to the growth of rural community paramedicine programs, including funding, payment, and workforce.
Author(s): Vida Foubister
Date: 03/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Commonwealth Fund
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Coal Workers' Health Surveillance Program: Black Lung Screenings
Fact sheet describing a program intended to study the causes and effects of coal mine dust lung disease and to offer early detection and prevent progression of the disease. Provides information on health screenings available at mobile testing units that travel to communities and mining sites.
Date: 03/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
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Digital Access: A Super Determinant of Health
Discusses how the digital divide intersects with health equity and behavioral health and how telehealth can bridge health disparities. Describes local, state, and federal examples of efforts to reduce the digital divide. Includes a list of funding opportunities and resources promoting broadband access.
Date: 03/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
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Broadband in Kansas: The Challenges of Digital Access and Affordability
Provides an overview of broadband access in Kansas, including adequacy, affordability, digital literacy, and satisfaction. Provides county-level maps depicting data related to broadband access and discusses the rural-urban digital divide.
Author(s): Donna Ginther, Germaine R. Halegoua, Xan Wedel, et al.
Date: 03/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Kansas Institute for Policy & Social Research
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Financial Burden of Medical Care Among Veterans Aged 25–64, by Health Insurance Coverage: United States, 2019–2021
Examines financial burden for medical care among veterans aged 25–64 for those with VA health care alone and combined with different types of health insurance coverage. Table 1 includes data on VA health care and health insurance coverage for those in metropolitan and nonmetro areas.
Author(s): Robin A. Cohen, Peter Boersma
Date: 03/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Center for Health Statistics
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Addressing the Long-Term Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Children and Families
Report discusses the long-term physical, mental, and social outcomes of the COVID-19 pandemic. Explores the effects of social isolation, school closures, financial hardships, and physical illness caused by the pandemic and highlights the groups that have been disproportionately affected, such as American Indian and Alaska Native communities.
Additional links: Read Online, Report Highlights
Author(s): Board on Children, Youth, and Families
Date: 03/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
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American Indian and Alaska Native Communities Face a 'Disproportionate Burden of Oral Disease' - Reversing Inequities Involves Challenges and Opportunities
White paper explores the state of American Indian and Alaska Native oral health. Discusses some of the oral health disparities faced by AI/AN communities, such as historical and cultural factors, workforce shortages, and oral health literacy, among other factors. Presents solutions and strategic recommendations to address AI/AN oral health disparities.
Additional links: Executive Summary
Author(s): Mary Altenberg, Terrence Batliner, Tommie Chavis II, et al.
Date: 03/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: CareQuest Institute for Oral Health, National Indian Health Board
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VA Health Care: Improved Data, Planning, and Communication Needed for Infrastructure Modernization and Realignment
Describes the Asset and Infrastructure Review Commission and Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) recommendations to modernize and realign its infrastructure. Examines the data that the VA used to inform its recommendations, any plans that VA has to improve such data, and the extent of the VA's planning to modernize and realign its infrastructure. Discusses rural-specific recommendations and compares data on facility closure and service line change recommendations by rurality.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 03/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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Leveraging Telemedicine To Eliminate Outcome Disparities For Rural-Born Newborns
Presentation slides from a webinar discussing the barriers affecting care for neonatal encephalopathy in rural areas. Describes telemedicine strategies evaluating neonatal encephalopathy and methods for improving parent understanding. Identifies other applications of telemedicine appropriate for the care of newborns and children.
Additional links: Transcript
Author(s): Alexa Craig
Date: 03/2023
Type: Presentation Slides
Sponsoring organization: National Consortium of Telehealth Resource Centers
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Access to Health Services Across Rural and Urban Minoritized Racial/Ethnic Group Areas
Summarizes results from a series of reports documenting disparities in access to health services nationwide across ZIP Code Tabulation Areas (ZCTAs) categorized by rurality and racial and ethnic composition. Presents data on the distance to care from the population center of rural and urban ZCTAs to the nearest provider. Covers first line, higher acuity, and home-based services.
Date: 03/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural and Minority Health Research Center (formerly the South Carolina Rural Health Research Center)
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