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Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Health workforce education and training

Rural Track Programs: A Guide to the Updated Medicare Requirements
An overview of the requirements to participate in the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Rural Track Program (RTP), which is a partnership between an urban hospital - the primary clinical site - and rural site(s) for medical residency training. Describes how the RTP program differs from the earlier rural training track (RTT) program.
Date: 05/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Association of American Medical Colleges
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Factors Associated With Health Care Professionals' Choice to Practice in Rural Minnesota
Analyzes the factors that impact a healthcare practitioner's choice to work in rural or urban Minnesota. Utilizes 2021-2022 data from 32,086 respondents to observe feedback from advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs), physicians, physician assistants (PAs), and registered nurses (RNs). Discusses issues such as where the practitioner grew up, scope of practice, loan forgiveness opportunities, internship experiences, financial or family considerations, and more.
Author(s): Teri Fritsma, Carrie Henning-Smith, Jacqueline L. Gauer, et al.
Citation: JAMA Network Open, 6(5)
Date: 05/2023
Type: Document
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Policy Recommendations for Improving Rural Cancer Services in the United States
Discusses cancer healthcare access for rural residents and factors in access challenges. Discusses rural physician recruitment, facility closures, reimbursement, data gathering, and graduate medical education. Offers policy recommendations for incentivizing and increasing the rural cancer care workforce as well as gathering cancer-related data.
Author(s): Adrienne B. Lent, Daniel Derksen, Elizabeth T. Jacobs, Leila Barraza, Elizabeth A. Calhoun
Citation: JCO Oncology Practice, 19(5), 288-294
Date: 05/2023
Type: Document
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Emergency Department Preparedness to Care for Sexual Assault Survivors: A Nationwide Study
Surveys 315 sexual assault (SA) advocates to determine emergency department staff preparedness and available resources for SA survivors. Discusses rural and urban access to sexual assault nurse examiners and implications for quality of care.
Author(s): Kristen Chalmers, Meredith Hollender, Liam Spurr, et al.
Citation: Western Journal of Emergency Medicine: Integrating Emergency Care with Population Health, 24(3)
Date: 05/2023
Type: Document
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Achieving Behavioral Health Care Integration in Rural America
Provides an overview of behavioral health and primary care integration and how integration may be different in rural areas than in urban and suburban areas. Examines the barriers to integration in rural areas and opportunities for policies that can improve access to care. Offers policy recommendations to better coordinate and integrate primary care and behavioral health services for high-risk groups and expand the ability of primary care providers to handle the lower-acuity behavioral health needs of patients through enhanced payments, training, and improved access to behavioral health providers for consultation and referral. Builds on the March 2021 report, Tackling America's Mental Health and Addiction Crisis Through Primary Care Integration.
Author(s): Kendall Strong, Michele Gilbert, Julia Harris, et al.
Date: 05/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Bipartisan Policy Center
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Recruiting the Next Generation of Behavioral Health Professionals
Podcast episode regarding the recruitment, training, and retention of behavioral health specialists in rural areas. Discusses the University of Iowa Health Care rural psychiatry residency track and Public Psychiatry Fellowship program.
Date: 05/2023
Type: Audio
Sponsoring organization: American Hospital Association
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When It's Not Enough: Sleep's Impact on Rural America's Health and Safety
Discusses the impact of sleep on rural health and public safety, with insights from clinical sleep experts, a federal public health agency representative, and Nebraska Extension.
Author(s): Kay Miller Temple
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 05/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Purposefully Investing in the Tribal Home Visiting Workforce
Examines the Tribal Home Visiting workforce and the various programs that impact the well-being of American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) populations. Includes stories from home visitor staff regarding their work with AI/AN populations, culturally sensitive programming, recruitment and retention strategies, and management of appropriate compensation and training opportunities for the home visiting workforce.
Date: 05/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Tribal Home Visiting
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An Exploratory Study of a Hands-on Naloxone Training for Rural Clinicians and Staff
Presents a study on the efficacy of a hands-on naloxone training for rural healthcare providers as a means of reducing opioid overdose fatalities in rural areas. Discusses the fentanyl-driven surge in opioid overdose deaths and describes the 1-hour training session, which involved a lecture and hands-on training with naloxone.
Author(s): Shameka L. Cody, Cheryl B. Hines, Christina J. Glenn, et al.
Citation: Journal of Nursing Scholarship, 55(3), 599-604
Date: 05/2023
Type: Document
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Midwives: Information on Births, Workforce, and Midwifery Education
Presents data on midwife-attended births, the midwifery workforce, and challenges to obtaining midwifery care. Discusses midwifery education programs, the number of students in these programs, midwifery educational challenges, and available federal financial support through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) and the Indian Health Service (IHS). Describes challenges to measuring the quality of maternal healthcare, including midwifery care.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 04/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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