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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Health workforce supply and demand

Early Impacts of Dental Therapists in Minnesota
Evaluates the impact of dental therapists on the delivery of and access to oral health services in Minnesota from 2009 through 2014. Includes a rural and urban comparison on the effects of dental therapists on patient wait times and distances traveled for dental appointments.
Date: 02/2014
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Minnesota Department of Health - Office of Rural Health and Primary Care
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Colorado's Primary Care Workforce: A Study of Regional Disparities
Analyzes the primary care workforce across Colorado in 2014, including rural and underserved urban areas. Covers solutions to address the healthcare workforce capacity. Provides statistics for 21 health regions in Colorado on practicing primary care physicians, population, average weekly patient care hours per physician, and more.
Author(s): Amy Downs, Rebecca Alderfer, Brian Clark, Rebecca Crepin, Deborah Goeken
Date: 02/2014
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Colorado Health Institute
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Running the Numbers: The Maldistribution of Health Care Providers in Rural and Underserved Areas in North Carolina
Discusses the maldistribution of health care professionals related to population needs in rural North Carolina. Highlights physician workforce shortages in primary care, general surgery, psychiatry, licensed nurse practitioners, and physician assistants.
Author(s): Julie C. Spero, Erin P. Fraher
Citation: North Carolina Medical Journal, 75(1), 74-79
Date: 01/2014
Type: Document
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2014 County Health Rankings Key Findings Report
Provides information on county-level health disparities by analyzing health factors and outcomes throughout the U.S. Covers child poverty, smoking, physical inactivity, severe housing problems, availability of mental health providers, and more.
Date: 2014
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: County Health Rankings & Roadmaps
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Not Enough Primary-Care Doctors? Try Missouri's Prescription
Describes how medical school graduates are legally allowed to work as assistant physicians in rural and underserved areas of Missouri without having completed a residency program. Discusses legislation that allows medical school graduates to become practicing assistant physicians and practice requirements.
Author(s): Arthur L. Caplan
Citation: Missouri Medicine, 111(6), 474-475
Date: 2014
Type: Document
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Projecting the Supply and Demand for Primary Care Practitioners Through 2020
Examines the adequacy of the future supply of primary care providers to meet the projected demand for primary care. Includes information on physician, nurse practitioner, and physician assistant supply and demand. Discusses likely causes of growth in demand for primary care, and potential impact of increased use of NPs and PAs on alleviating the primary care physician shortage. Section 8 of the full report discusses geographic disparities.
Date: 11/2013
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Health Resources and Services Administration
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Interprofessional Practice Education: Is the 'Interprofessional' Component Relevant to Recruiting New Graduates to Underserved Areas?
Examines interprofessional education and its impact on recruiting new health professionals to work in underserved rural and urban areas.
Author(s): Siegrid Deutschlander, Esther Suter, Ruby Grymonpre
Citation: Rural and Remote Health, 13(4), 2489
Date: 11/2013
Type: Document
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Advancing Geriatrics Fellowship Programs Through a Community-Based Residency Network
Describes a project, conducted through Michigan State University, which studied the formation of geriatric fellowship programs within an established family medicine residency network to recruit and retain graduates. Facilitates the accreditation of new programs in nonmetropolitan communities, recruits fellows into underserved areas, and helps retain graduates to practice and teach in neighboring areas.
Author(s): Kevin Foley, Marolee Neuberger, Mary Noel, et al.
Citation: Family Medicine, 45(10), 719-725
Date: 11/2013
Type: Document
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The Aging of the Rural Primary Care Physician Workforce: Will Some Locations Be More Affected than Others?
Examines the location of older primary care physicians for rural and urban counties, with maps portraying the data. Discusses the potential impact of retiring physicians on rural primary care shortages.
Author(s): Meredith A. Fordyce, Mark P. Doescher, Susan M. Skillman
Date: 09/2013
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
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GME in the United States: A Review of State Initiatives
Reports results from a study examining what states are doing to address issues affecting the physician workforce, including shortages in rural areas. Report introduces maps and charts showing demographics and healthcare workforce data by state.
Author(s): Julie C. Spero, Erin P. Fraher, Thomas C. Ricketts, Paul H. Rockey
Date: 09/2013
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: The Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research
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