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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Physician assistants

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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The Health of US Primary Care: A Baseline Scorecard Tracking Support for High-Quality Primary Care
Examines the support for implementing high-quality primary care in the United States across measures in five categories: financing, workforce, access, training, and research. Presents data on primary care financing trends from 2010 to 2020, the number of primary care physicians per capita in medically-underserved areas (MUAs) and non-MUAs by state, trends in financing primary care research, and more. Figure 7 shows the percentage of physician residents trained in an MUA or rural county by state in 2020. Appendix B includes data on the number and percentage of physician residents trained in an MUA, rural county, or both between the 2012-2013 academic year and the 2020-2021 academic year.
Additional links: Appendix B, Full Report
Date: 02/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Milbank Memorial Fund, Robert Graham Center, The Physicians Foundation
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Provision of Evaluation and Management Visits by Nurse Practitioners and Physician Assistants in the USA from 2013 to 2019: Cross-sectional Time Series Study
Evaluated healthcare visits of Medicare patients between 2013 and 2019 to determine trends in proportion of visits by a nurse practitioner or physician assistant versus a physician. Includes analyses of clinical setting, diagnosis, and various patient characteristics including rurality. Discusses workforce shortage impacts on the findings.
Author(s): Sadiq Y. Patel, David Auerbach, Haiden A. Huskamp, et al.
Citation: BMJ, 382, e073933
Date: 2023
Type: Document
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Georgia Physician Assistant Workforce Report: Based on 2019-2020 Licensure Renewal Data
Measures and tracks trends in physician assistant demographics, supply, and distribution. Features county-level maps and statistics for Georgia physician assistants, with breakdowns by location in metropolitan and nonmetropolitan practice settings.
Date: 2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce
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Rural Health Clinics: Focusing on the Patient
Brief overview of the history of Rural Health Clinics (RHCs), from their origins in the Rural Health Clinic Services Act of 1977, and into the present, as they continue to provide an array of vital services to rural communities.
Date: 10/2022
Type: Video/Multimedia
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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A Career of Influencing Rural Healthcare Delivery: Bill Finerfrock and the NARHC Origin Story
Reviews the founding of the National Association of Rural Health Clinics (NARHC), with insights from long-time NARHC executive director Bill Finerfrock about collaborative work with other rural health organizations to support the Rural Health Clinic program.
Author(s): Kay Miller Temple
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 10/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Rural Health Clinic Program at 45 Years: Created for Access and Still Delivering Care
Features rural health policy experts, researchers, and clinicians discussing the impact of the Rural Health Clinic (RHC) program on outpatient healthcare delivery.
Author(s): Kay Miller Temple
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 10/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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The Involvement of Rural Health Clinic Practitioners in Cancer Treatment Decisions and Survivorship Care
Results of a survey examining how practitioners from 153 Rural Health Clinics (RHCs) in 36 states are involved in their patients' cancer treatment and survivorship decisions. Features statistics on RHC characteristics, proportions of RHC practitioners who provide care or engage in joint decisions with another practitioner, RHC practitioner roles in cancer survivorship care, and experience with follow-up care for cancer survivors.
Author(s): Whitney E. Zahnd, Allie F. Silverman, Stella Self, et al.
Date: 10/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural and Minority Health Research Center (formerly the South Carolina Rural Health Research Center)
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PA Interest in Rural Locations, Medically Underserved Areas, and Health Professional Shortage Areas
Explores perceived barriers and willingness for physician assistants and physician associates (PAs) to practice in rural areas, Medically Underserved Areas (MUAs), and Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs). Presents data from survey responses of current PAs and PA students.
Date: 09/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: American Academy of Physician Associates
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Oregon Primary Care Loan Forgiveness Program (PCLF) Active Awardees by City
Map displays the location and the number of Oregon Primary Care Loan Forgiveness Program (PCLF) recipients by city and county.
Date: 07/2022
Type: Map/Mapping System
Sponsoring organization: Oregon Office of Rural Health
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