Skip to main content
Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Healthcare needs and services

Associations Between COVID-19 Therapies and Outcomes in Rural and Urban America: A Multisite, Temporal Analysis from the Alpha to Omicron SARS-CoV-2 Variants
Examines COVID-19 treatment, health outcomes, and mortality disparities in rural and urban areas of the United States. Analyzes 2021-2023 National COVID Cohort Collaborative (N3C) data from 3,018,646 patients to break down COVID-19 disparities according to patient demographics, vaccine status, comorbidities, U.S. Census region, and adverse inpatient events, as well as urban, urban-adjacent, or nonurban-adjacent location.
Author(s): A. Jerrod Anzalone, William H. Beasley, Kimberly Murray, et al.
Citation: Journal of Rural Health
Date: 07/2024
Type: Document
view details
Disruptors, Essential Services, and Reflections on a Career in Rural Health, with John Supplitt
An episode of the Exploring Rural Health podcast featuring John Supplitt, Senior Director of Rural Health Services for the American Hospital Association. Focuses on the importance of maintaining rural essential services, along with insights from Supplitt's long career in rural health.
Date: 07/2024
Type: Audio
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
view details
Traffic Safety Facts, 2022 Data: Large Trucks
National data on fatal and nonfatal traffic crashes involving commercial and noncommercial trucks weighing more than 10,000 pounds. Features statistics from 2013-2022 with breakdowns by involvement rate per 100,000 registered trucks, crash characteristics, estimated proportion of alcohol-impaired drivers, previous 5-year driving records of drivers in fatal crashes, time of day and week, state, and rural or urban location.
Date: 07/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
view details
Traffic Safety Facts, 2022 Data: Passenger Vehicles
National data on traffic crashes involving passenger vehicles. Features statistics from 2021 and 2022 with breakdowns by vehicle type, time of day, fatalities, state, and rural or urban locations.
Date: 07/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
view details
Impact of In-Home Handwashing Stations on Hand Hygiene During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Unpiped Rural Alaska Native Homes
Examines the impact of installing the Miniature Portable Alternative Sanitation System (Mini-PASS) in rural Alaskan homes that lacked piped water. Utilizes interview feedback from 71 households who used the Mini-PASS during the COVID-19 pandemic, discussing themes such as handwashing station usage, the ability to troubleshoot repairs, collaboration with tribal health organizations, and more.
Author(s): Olivia A. Harmon, Tricia S. Howe, Jacqualine D. Schaeffer, Ramot Adeboyejo, Laura P. Eichelberger
Citation: Public Health Reports, 139(1), 81S-88S
Date: 07/2024
Type: Document
view details
Can ERAS Help Reduce Health Disparities and Overcome Barriers to Equitable Surgical Care in Marginalized Communities?
Discusses the value of Enhanced Recovery after Surgery (ERAS) protocols in rural and marginalized communities. Identifies barriers to access and proposes strategies to increase equity. Highlights aspects of ERAS implementation including pediatrics, health literacy, communication with patients and among providers, telehealth, and more.
Author(s): Chirag Ram, Ruoying Li, Andrew D. Franklin, et al.
Citation: Journal of Pediatric Surgery Open, 7, 100141
Date: 07/2024
Type: Document
view details
Distance as an Obstacle to Clinical Trial Access: Who Is Affected and Why It Matters
Evaluates factors associated with geographic remoteness of 60 miles or more from the nearest phase 2 or 3 clinical trial for a variety of health conditions. Discusses American Indian reservations and rural areas, and provides data on demographic factors associated with remoteness including race and ethnicity, educational attainment, and poverty. Includes a county-level interactive map of clinical trial remoteness for health conditions including cancers, substance use disorder, diabetes, obesity, COPD, stroke, and more.
Additional links: Interactive Map
Author(s): Andrew Friedson, Bumyang Kim, Maggie Switek, Lawson Mansell
Date: 06/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: The Milken Institute
view details
Assessing How Alcohol Use Patterns Relate to Obesity among American Adolescents from Rural and Urban Areas: Five Years of Pooled Data
Analyzes the association between alcohol use and obesity among rural and urban adolescents aged 12-17. Utilizes 2015-2019 National Survey on Drug Use and Health data.
Author(s): Christian E. Vazquez, Fawn A. Brown, Faheem Ohri, Philip Baiden
Citation: PLoS ONE, 19(6), e0305638
Date: 06/2024
Type: Document
view details
Community Buprenorphine Continuation Post-Release Following Extended Release Vs. Sublingual Buprenorphine During Incarceration: A Pilot Project in Maine
Compares post-release outcomes among incarcerated people who received extended-release buprenorphine (XRB) versus sublingual buprenorphine (SLB) for opioid use disorder (OUD) in rural Maine jails. Includes data from two jails, one of which had implemented an XRB pilot program, on rates of post-release community buprenorphine treatment continuation, diversion, safety concerns, XRB side effects, and post-release mortality.
Author(s): Alane B. O'Connor, Catherine Gelsinger, Sadie M. Donovan, Jessica Marshall, Katherine A. Ahrens
Citation: Health & Justice, 12, 28
Date: 06/2024
Type: Document
view details
Congruence Between County Dental Health Provider Shortage Area Designations and the Social Vulnerability Index
Provides visual comparisons of the relationship between Dental Health Provider Shortage Areas (HPSAs) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's 2020 Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) designations on county-level U.S. maps. Includes table showing median county-level SVI score by HPSA designation, broken down by metro, nonmetro, and all county.
Author(s): Gabriel A. Benavidez, Elizabeth Crouch, Joni Nelson, Amy Martin
Citation: Preventing Chronic Disease, 21
Date: 06/2024
Type: Document
view details