Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Community engagement and volunteerism
Co-Creating and Disseminating Substance Use and Vaping Educational Videos, Question Prompt Lists, and Other Resources in Partnership with Community Organizations and Youth in Western North Carolina
Describes the development of and evaluates the social media reach of a youth empowerment program addressing substance use in rural North Carolina. Discusses the inclusion of youth in the development process.
Author(s): Betsy Sleath, Abena A. Adjei, Jeremy Lowery, et al.
Citation: PEC Innovation, 7
Date: 12/2025
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Describes the development of and evaluates the social media reach of a youth empowerment program addressing substance use in rural North Carolina. Discusses the inclusion of youth in the development process.
Author(s): Betsy Sleath, Abena A. Adjei, Jeremy Lowery, et al.
Citation: PEC Innovation, 7
Date: 12/2025
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Communities That Care: The Power of Giving with Sanford Health
A conversation with Sanford Health's president and CE0, Bill Gassen, and chief philanthropy officer, Deb Koski, about philanthropy to support healthcare access in rural Midwestern communities. Focuses on community engagement and collaboration.
Author(s): Tom Haederle, Bill Gassen, Sue Ellen Wagner, Deb Koski
Date: 11/2025
Sponsoring organization: American Hospital Association
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A conversation with Sanford Health's president and CE0, Bill Gassen, and chief philanthropy officer, Deb Koski, about philanthropy to support healthcare access in rural Midwestern communities. Focuses on community engagement and collaboration.
Author(s): Tom Haederle, Bill Gassen, Sue Ellen Wagner, Deb Koski
Date: 11/2025
Sponsoring organization: American Hospital Association
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Strong Communities Start Here: Introducing Missouri's Civic Muscle Index
A recorded webinar that describes the development of the Civic Muscle Index, an interactive tool that measures healthy communities at the county level in Missouri. Focuses on domains such as belonging, social contribution, leadership, and community vitality. Transcript available below description.
Additional links: Slides
Author(s): Claire Wolff Rippel, Angela Johnson, Jamie Kleinsorge
Date: 10/2025
Sponsoring organization: North Central Regional Center for Rural Development
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A recorded webinar that describes the development of the Civic Muscle Index, an interactive tool that measures healthy communities at the county level in Missouri. Focuses on domains such as belonging, social contribution, leadership, and community vitality. Transcript available below description.
Additional links: Slides
Author(s): Claire Wolff Rippel, Angela Johnson, Jamie Kleinsorge
Date: 10/2025
Sponsoring organization: North Central Regional Center for Rural Development
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Missouri's Civic Muscle Index
An interactive tool that measures healthy communities in Missouri. Includes domains such as belonging, social contribution, leadership, and community vitality. Provides county-level data as well as county-to-county comparisons.
Date: 10/2025
Sponsoring organization: University of Missouri Extension
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An interactive tool that measures healthy communities in Missouri. Includes domains such as belonging, social contribution, leadership, and community vitality. Provides county-level data as well as county-to-county comparisons.
Date: 10/2025
Sponsoring organization: University of Missouri Extension
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Introducing Public Health Vending Machines in Rural Communities: Protocol for a Study Using a Community-Based Participatory Approach
Provides a study protocol focused on creating a community-engaged approach to implementing public health vending machines (PHVMs) that distribute naloxone in rural North Carolina. Discusses the need to engage people who have experienced substance use when developing public health interventions to prevent drug overdose.
Author(s): Meghan Guter, Lauren Harrell, Kathleen L Egan, Reese Hiatt, Lori Ann Eldridge
Citation: JMIR Research Protocols, 14
Date: 09/2025
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Provides a study protocol focused on creating a community-engaged approach to implementing public health vending machines (PHVMs) that distribute naloxone in rural North Carolina. Discusses the need to engage people who have experienced substance use when developing public health interventions to prevent drug overdose.
Author(s): Meghan Guter, Lauren Harrell, Kathleen L Egan, Reese Hiatt, Lori Ann Eldridge
Citation: JMIR Research Protocols, 14
Date: 09/2025
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Conducting Research That Matters to Rural Practice and Communities
Commentary describing activities designed to improve rural clinical and community engagement in research led by the Oregon Rural Practice Research Network and the WWAMI (Washington, Wyoming, Alaska, Montana and Idaho) region Practice and Research Network. Features example solutions for meaningful engagement.
Author(s): Sebastian T. Tong, Melinda M. Davis, Allison M. Cole
Citation: Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine, 38(2), 603-606
Date: 08/2025
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Commentary describing activities designed to improve rural clinical and community engagement in research led by the Oregon Rural Practice Research Network and the WWAMI (Washington, Wyoming, Alaska, Montana and Idaho) region Practice and Research Network. Features example solutions for meaningful engagement.
Author(s): Sebastian T. Tong, Melinda M. Davis, Allison M. Cole
Citation: Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine, 38(2), 603-606
Date: 08/2025
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Rural Hospital Philanthropy: Community Awareness and Willingness to Donate to the Georgia Rural Hospital Tax Credit Program
Examines awareness of and willingness to participate in Georgia's Rural Hospital Tax Credit program, utilizing survey data of 940 people living in rural South Georgia communities served by eligible local hospitals. Includes data on associations between willingness to donate to rural hospitals and satisfaction with hospital quality, tax credit program awareness, and demographic factors such as household income and educational attainment. Discusses philanthropy as a source of financial support for rural hospitals.
Author(s): Linda Kimsey, Bettye A. Apenteng, Samuel T. Opoku, et al.
Citation: BMC Health Services Research, 25, 980
Date: 07/2025
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Examines awareness of and willingness to participate in Georgia's Rural Hospital Tax Credit program, utilizing survey data of 940 people living in rural South Georgia communities served by eligible local hospitals. Includes data on associations between willingness to donate to rural hospitals and satisfaction with hospital quality, tax credit program awareness, and demographic factors such as household income and educational attainment. Discusses philanthropy as a source of financial support for rural hospitals.
Author(s): Linda Kimsey, Bettye A. Apenteng, Samuel T. Opoku, et al.
Citation: BMC Health Services Research, 25, 980
Date: 07/2025
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How Should Rural EMS Funding Streams Be Improved?
Discusses the need and mechanisms for funding rural EMS systems more robustly. Offers suggestions for finding funding and discusses the decline in volunteerism.
Author(s): James Small
Citation: AMA Journal of Ethics, 27(7), E518-524
Date: 07/2025
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Discusses the need and mechanisms for funding rural EMS systems more robustly. Offers suggestions for finding funding and discusses the decline in volunteerism.
Author(s): James Small
Citation: AMA Journal of Ethics, 27(7), E518-524
Date: 07/2025
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Designing Participant-Centered Non-Congregate Summer Meal Programs
A recorded webinar that discusses non-congregate meal programs that serve rural populations in the summer. Focuses on the Second Harvest program in rural Florida and how they incorporated participant feedback and collaborated with community members. Transcript available below description.
Additional links: Slide Deck
Date: 05/2025
Sponsoring organization: No Kid Hungry
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A recorded webinar that discusses non-congregate meal programs that serve rural populations in the summer. Focuses on the Second Harvest program in rural Florida and how they incorporated participant feedback and collaborated with community members. Transcript available below description.
Additional links: Slide Deck
Date: 05/2025
Sponsoring organization: No Kid Hungry
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Developing an Implementation Fidelity Measure for a Family Healthy Weight Program
Examines strategies to conduct a direct observation method to measure implementation fidelity in a micropolitan/rural community-based family healthy weight program (FHWP). Discusses the process of hiring and training community members as direct observers, utility and quality of this methodology, and potential usefulness of developing an implementation fidelity measure for assessing future programs in rural or geographically dispersed areas.
Author(s): Caitlin A. Golden, Paul A. Estabrooks, Kate A. Heelan, et al.
Citation: International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity, 22, 53
Date: 05/2025
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Examines strategies to conduct a direct observation method to measure implementation fidelity in a micropolitan/rural community-based family healthy weight program (FHWP). Discusses the process of hiring and training community members as direct observers, utility and quality of this methodology, and potential usefulness of developing an implementation fidelity measure for assessing future programs in rural or geographically dispersed areas.
Author(s): Caitlin A. Golden, Paul A. Estabrooks, Kate A. Heelan, et al.
Citation: International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity, 22, 53
Date: 05/2025
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