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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Health workforce

Integrating Behavioral Health and Primary Care in Rural America
Recording of a May 2023 webinar discussing behavioral health and primary care integration in rural areas. Explores the importance of integration in rural areas, the barriers to integration, and opportunities for policies that can improve access to care. Features opening remarks from Tom Morris, Associate Administrator for Rural Health Policy at the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), and a panel of providers from Missouri, New Hampshire, and Texas. Transcript available in the video description.
Date: 05/2023
Type: Video/Multimedia
Sponsoring organization: Bipartisan Policy Center
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Patient-Centered Care Through Nurse Practitioner–Led Integrated Behavioral Health: A Case Study
Examines the implementation of a nurse practitioner-led interprofessional team-based behavioral healthcare delivery model in 5 rural or medically underserved clinics in Texas from July 1, 2020, through December 31, 2021. Analyzes the first year of implementation of the delivery model utilizing multiple data sources, with a focus on barriers to implementation, challenges to sustainability, and successes.
Author(s): Cindy Weston, Elizabeth Wells-Beede, Alice Salazar, et al.
Citation: Public Health Reports, 138(1)
Date: 05/2023
Type: Document
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Medical Assistants' Telehealth Roles and Skills in Primary Care During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Study examining the role of medical assistants (MAs) in providing primary care via telehealth during the COVID-19 pandemic. 10 key informants from national and state primary care organizations were interviewed. Results include discussion about the variation in roles being dependent on organization size and rurality.
Author(s): Samantha W. Pollack, Susan M. Skillman, Tracy M. Mroz, Bianca K. Frogner
Date: 05/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: UW Center for Health Workforce Studies
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Texas Surgical Assistants, 2022: Trends, Distribution, and Demographics
Fact sheet describing growth trends and population-to-provider data by county and geographic designation of surgical assistants in Texas. Features statistics with breakdowns by metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas.
Date: 05/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Texas Health and Human Services
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Texas Speech-Language Pathologists, 2022: Trends, Distribution, and Demographics
Fact sheet showing speech-language pathologist (SLP) growth trends, geographic distribution by county and ratio of population to SLP by metropolitan, non-metropolitan, border, and non-border geography, and provider demographics by age and gender.
Date: 05/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Texas Health and Human Services
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Texas Optometrists, 2022: Trends, Distribution, and Demographics
Fact sheet showing optometrist growth trends, geographic distribution by county and ratio of population to optometrist by metropolitan, non-metropolitan, border, and non-border geography, provider demographics by race/ethnicity, age, and gender, and employment characteristics.
Date: 05/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Texas Health and Human Services
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Texas Chiropractors, 2022: Trends, Distribution, and Demographics
Fact sheet showing chiropractor growth trends, geographic distribution by county and ratio of population to chiropractor by metropolitan, non-metropolitan, border, and non-border geography, and provider demographics by age and gender.
Date: 05/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Texas Health and Human Services
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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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New England Health System CEOs Address Rural Healthcare Crisis In A Live Conversation
Recording of a May 22, 2023, roundtable discussion with the chief executive officers (CEOs) of Dartmouth Health, MaineHealth, and the University of Vermont Health Network regarding the challenges rural healthcare providers face. Covers workforce challenges, regulatory and inflation challenges, and innovations to preserve access to care. Transcript is available in the video description.
Date: 05/2023
Type: Video/Multimedia
Sponsoring organization: Dartmouth Health
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