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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Environmental health

Stressors for Farmworker Parents During Wildfire Season
Outlines themes identified during interviews and town hall discussions with farmworker parents in 2 Washington counties about childcare, work, and concerns about children's exposure to wildfire smoke and the impact on absenteeism in the workplace. Discusses the informational needs for farmworkers and the role of community-based organizations.
Author(s): Savannah M. D'Evelyn, Isabel Nerenberg, Maria Blancas, et al.
Citation: BMC Public Health, 24, 3314
Date: 11/2024
Type: Document
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Residential Instability, Neighborhood Deprivation, and Outcomes for Children
Examines the effects of residential instability and neighborhood deprivation on children's educational outcomes via an analysis of North Carolina births, lead testing, and standardized testing score data. Includes data on differences in study outcomes based on movement between rural and urban areas.
Author(s): Mercedes A. Bravo, Dominique Zephyr, Marie Lynn Miranda
Citation: BMC Public Health, 24, 3343
Date: 11/2024
Type: Document
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Future Directions for Rural Population Research: Findings from RPRN's Listening Sessions
Summarizes 5 listening sessions with rural development practitioners aiming to identify areas of research need by rural population researchers. Discusses trends in agriculture and food systems, community and economic development, the environment and natural resources, and health, healthcare, and disability services. Offers recommendations related to information sharing, community involvement in research, data gathering, and best practices and evaluation.
Author(s): Kristina Brant, Paige, Kelly, Danielle Rhubart, et al.
Date: 11/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural Population Research Network
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Texas Task Force of Border Health Officials Recommendations Report, 2024
Report addressing public health issues in the Texas-Mexico border region, offering short- and long-term planning recommendations. Covers health workforce training, communicable diseases, environmental health, mental health, and maternal child health.
Date: 11/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Task Force of Border Health Officials
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Environmental Inequality in Estimated Cancer Risk from Airborne Toxic Exposure across United States Communities from 2011 to 2019
Examines disparities in cancer risk due to airborne toxic exposure at the census tract level, utilizing American Community Survey, NATA, and AirToxScreen data sets. Breaks down cancer risk data in rural, suburban, and urban census tracts by race, educational attainment, and median household income, with year-by-year comparisons for the period 2011-2019.
Author(s): Patrick Hurbain, Matthew J. Strickland, Yan Liu, Dingsheng Li
Citation: Environmental Science & Technology, 58(43), 19115-19127
Date: 10/2024
Type: Document
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Rural Development: Actions Needed to Improve Assistance to Southwest Border Communities Known as Colonias
Provides an overview of colonias, predominately rural, Hispanic communities near the U.S.-Mexico border. Examines conditions in colonias and the challenges they face in obtaining and using federal assistance. Presents results of an analysis of American Community Survey data, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and Housing and Urban Development (HUD) program documentation and funding data for fiscal years 2020–2023, and interviews with stakeholders. Offers recommendations for Congress and the USDA to preserve eligibility to funding set aside for colonias and identify applications for Single Family Housing assistance for projects in colonias.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 09/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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Geographic Variations in Urban-Rural Particulate Matter (PM2.5) Concentrations in the United States, 2010–2019
Compares fine particulate matter 2.5 (PM2.5) ambient air concentration in rural versus urban areas from 2010 to 2019, utilizing the AHRQ database on Social Determinants of Health. Examines rural-urban changes in PM2.5 concentration over time, with breakdowns by census tract race and ethnicity, poverty, residents under age 15, and residents over age 65.
Author(s): Daniel J. Kilpatrick, Peiyin Hung, Elizabeth Crouch, et al.
Citation: GeoHealth, 8(9), e2023GH000920
Date: 09/2024
Type: Document
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The State of Health in Tennessee: 2024 Annual Report to the 113th Tennessee General Assembly
Assesses the health status of Tennesseans across the four areas of the State Health Plan Framework: A Healthy Start, A Healthy Life, a Healthy Environment, and a Healthy System of Care. Includes a section on social determinants of health and features statistics on various populations and aspects of healthcare, including rural hospital closures.
Additional links: A Healthy Environment: Housing, A Healthy Life: Income and Poverty, A Healthy Start: Poverty & Food Insecurity, A Healthy System of Care: Access
Date: 08/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Tennessee Department of Health
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Exposure to Climate Events and Mental Health: Risk and Protective Factors from the California Health Interview Survey
Examines the association between personal characteristics and negative mental health effects following exposure to extreme weather, utilizing data from the 2021 California Health Interview survey. Analyzes characteristics including age, race, gender, education, housing stability, neighborhood safety, level of rurality, and more.
Author(s): Daniel Zhao, Elissa Epel, Elaine Allen, Alison R. Hwong
Citation: PLoS Climate, 3(8), e0000387
Date: 08/2024
Type: Document
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A Scoping Review of Policies to Encourage Breastfeeding, Healthy Eating, and Physical Activity among Rural People and Places in the United States
Scoping review of 122 studies, reports, and theses on breastfeeding, healthy eating, and physical activity policy, systems, and environment change initiatives in rural areas. Analyzes source design, objectives, setting, focus, results, and more. Summarizes research findings and discusses data collection and sharing for rural initiatives.
Author(s): M. Renée Umstattd Meyer, Bailey Houghtaling, Marilyn E. Wende, et al.
Citation: BMC Public Health, 24, 2160
Date: 08/2024
Type: Document
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