Skip to main content
Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Oral health

National Health Service Corps Report to Congress for the Year 2020
Details program accomplishments of the National Health Service Corps (NHSC), provides updates on Health Professional Shortage Area designations, explains recruitment efforts for NHSC Scholarship and Loan Repayment Programs, provides estimates on number of patients seen by NHSC clinicians, and details short- and long-term retention rates. Features state-by-state data with breakdowns by urban and rural locations.
Date: 2021
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
view details
Kansas Primary Care Needs Assessment
Reports the results of a statewide needs assessment conducted in 2021 that focuses on the primary care needs of rural and underserved populations in Kansas. Includes discussion on provider shortages, access issues related to quality preventive and primary care services, telehealth services, and more. Shares maps providing county-level data on Primary Care, Dental, and Mental Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs).
Date: 2021
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Kansas Office of Primary Care and Rural Health
view details
Factors Affecting Access to Dental Care for Seniors in Rural Iowa
Poster presentation describing persistent barriers to dental care for seniors in rural Iowa. Describes how I-Smile Silver and an Area Agency on Aging work to address these barriers.
Author(s): C. Rupp, P.C. Damiano
Date: 2021
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: University of Iowa College of Dentistry and Dental Clinics
view details
Achieving Health Equity Through Oral Health Value-based Care: A Funder's Perspective
Presents a study on oral healthcare equity and the preventability of dental caries. Discusses oral healthcare access and presents oral health data on American Indian and Alaska Native populations. Highlights a community-based program in rural Virginia.
Author(s): Parrish Ravelli, Katinka Hakuta, Trenae Simpson
Citation: Journal of Public Health Dentistry, 80(S2), S80-S82
Date: 12/2020
Type: Document
view details
Income Disparities Widen the Gap in Oral Health of California Adults
Policy brief discussing associations between social determinants of health (SDOH) and oral health in California adults using data from the 2017 and 2018 California Health Interview Surveys (CHIS). Describes barriers related to oral health education, literacy, access to care, and oral health screening for low-income populations. Related infographic offers a map of oral health differences by region, noting disparities in rural California counties and data on income and racial/ethnic population characteristics.
Additional links: Infographic
Author(s): Nadereh Pourat, Maria Ditter
Date: 11/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: UCLA Center for Health Policy Research
view details
Barriers in Accessing Dental Care for Rural Iowa Seniors
Examines barriers to dental care for rural Iowa seniors. Discusses barriers including financial concerns, perceived overall physical health, and geographic limitations.
Author(s): Mallory Obenauf
Date: 10/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: University of Iowa Public Policy Center
view details
Overview of Rural Child Health
Policy position paper presenting an overview rural child health and factors influencing health disparities in rural children. Highlights disparities in mortality, physical health, preventive health, and oral health. Includes policy recommendations to address these disparities.
Author(s): Peiyin Hung, Matthew Workman, Kim Mohan
Date: 10/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Rural Health Association
view details
Rural–Urban Disparities in the Distribution of Dental Caries among Children in South-Eastern Louisiana: A Cross-sectional Study
Highlights a study comparing rates of dental caries in elementary school-aged children in rural and urban communities is south-eastern Louisiana. Draws data from as school-based dental screening and sealant program and compares the rates in rural and urban schools.
Author(s): Hasheemah Afaneh, Madhav KC, Alexandra Lieberman, et al.
Citation: Rural and Remote Health, 20, 5954
Date: 09/2020
Type: Document
view details
How Evidence-based Is US Dental Workforce Policy for Rural Communities?
Examines the alignment of policy and infrastructure with evidence-based strategies to promote access to oral health services for rural people. Focuses on best practices as well as barriers and facilitators to implementation of workforce strategies to increase the availability of services. Presents a scoping review of the evidence behind key strategies in the U.S. health policy context.
Author(s): Miranda Werts, Ginachukwa Amah, Elizabeth Mertz
Date: 09/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Oral Health Workforce Research Center
view details
Oral Health Value-Based Care - The Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) Story
Explores the role Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) play in providing oral healthcare through integration and how FQHCs used technology and flexible workforce modeling to provide care during the COVID-19 pandemic. Analyzes data from the IBM Watson MarketScan Multi-State Database, the Health Resources and Services Administration Uniform Data System, and a survey of participants of the safety net technical assistance program to evaluate health outcomes and service provision of FQHC patients versus non-FQHC patients. Discusses how value-based payment models can effect health outcomes and how FQHCs used telehealth to reach rural and underserved populations during the pandemic.
Date: 08/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: CareQuest Institute for Oral Health, National Association of Community Health Centers
view details