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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Health disparities

Handling the Handoff: Rural and Race-Based Disparities in Post Hospitalization Follow-up Care Among Medicare Beneficiaries with Diabetes
Estimates hospital admission rates for rural Medicare beneficiaries with diabetes, tracks the proportion of patients who receive adequate outpatient care post discharge, and assesses hospital readmissions. Explores the potential for race-based disparities in care for diabetes.
Additional links: Fact Sheet
Author(s): Kevin J. Bennett, Robert Chen, Medha Vyavaharkar, Saundra H. Glover, Janice C. Probst
Date: 09/2011
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural and Minority Health Research Center (formerly the South Carolina Rural Health Research Center)
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Rural vs. Urban Ambulatory Health Care Review
Examines evidence regarding potential disparities between rural and urban areas in healthcare provision and delivery, and how differences in health care may contribute to disparities in health outcomes of veterans that seek care in VA and non-VA health systems.
Author(s): Michele Spoont, Nancy Greer, Jenny Su
Date: 05/2011
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
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Understanding the Impact of Health IT in Underserved Communities and those with Health Disparities
Focuses on how the integration of different types of information technology into healthcare delivery may influence processes and outcomes related to the overall health of residents in underserved and rural communities.
Date: 10/2010
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: NORC at the University of Chicago
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Assessing Health Status, Behavioral Risks, and Health Disparities in American Indians Living on the Northern Plains of the U.S.
Presents health-related data from participants in four rural reservation communities and provides comparisons with a North Dakota statewide sample and a U.S national sample. Includes breakdowns by sex, age group, marital status, education, employment status, income, behavioral risks, preventive screenings, and medical conditions.
Author(s): Jeffrey E. Holm, Nancy Vogeltanz-Holm, Dmitri Poltavski, Leander McDonald
Citation: Public Health Reports, 125(1)
Date: 01/2010
Type: Document
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Health Disparities: A Rural-Urban Chartbook
Presents data on health disparities experienced by people living in rural America. Includes national and state-level data on health status, health behaviors, healthcare access, preventive care, and diabetes care.
Additional links: Fact Sheet: Health Disparities: A Rural-Urban Chartbook, Fact Sheet: Progress in Women's Cancer Screening, But Colon Cancer Lags, Fact Sheet: Rural Minorities Lag on Flu, Pneumonia Immunization
Author(s): Kevin J. Bennett, Bankole Olatosi, Janice C. Probst
Date: 06/2008
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural and Minority Health Research Center (formerly the South Carolina Rural Health Research Center)
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Challenges and Successes in Reducing Health Disparities: Workshop Summary
Examines differences in life expectancy within the U.S., the reasons for those differences, and the implications of this information for programs and policymakers. Discusses health disparities in America from the perspective of eight population groups, including two that are specifically rural.
Additional links: Read Online
Date: 2008
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Health and Medicine Division (HMD), National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
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National Trends in the Perinatal and Infant Health of Rural American Indians (AIs) and Alaska Natives (ANs): Have the Disparities Between AI/ANs and Whites Narrowed?
Summarizes findings from a study examining trends in prenatal care receipt, low-birthweight rates, neonatal and postneonatal death rates, and cause of death among rural American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) and White populations between 1985 and 1997.
Date: 09/2007
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
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Person and Place: The Compounding Effects of Race/Ethnicity and Rurality on Health
Discusses how the research addressing rural Black, Hispanic, and American Indian/Alaska Native populations suggests that disparities in health and in healthcare access found among rural racial/ethnic minority populations are generally more severe than those among urban racial/ethnic minorities.
Author(s): Janice Probst, Charity Moore, Saundra Glover, Michael Samuels
Citation: American Journal of Public Health, 94(10), 1695-1703
Date: 10/2004
Type: Document
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Broken Promises: Evaluating the Native American Health Care System
Describes the health disparities facing the Native American community, contributing barriers to healthcare access, and recommendations for improvement.
Date: 09/2004
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: U.S. Commission on Civil Rights
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Examining U.S. Disparities in Smoking among Rural Versus Urban Women of Reproductive Age: 2002–2019
Examines rural and urban trends in cigarette smoking prevalence and first-time quit ratios among adult women aged 18-44, utilizing 2002-2019 U.S. National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) data. Includes data on pregnant and non-pregnant women. Discusses the significance of smoking behaviors and access to cessation support for multigenerational rural health disparities.
Author(s): Stephen T. Higgins, Tyler Erath, Fang-Fang Chen
Citation: Preventive Medicine, 108115
Date: 08/2004
Type: Document
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