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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Primary care

Examining the Cost Effectiveness of Teaching Health Centers
Examines areas where the Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education (THCGME) program can produce savings, focusing on physician spending for patient encounters during and after residency training and patient Medicaid and Medicare insurance coverage. Identifies the location of THCGME programs and highlights program outcomes, including the percent of graduates who work in rural and underserved areas and practice primary care.
Author(s): Candice Chen, Leighton Ku, Marsha Regenstein, Fitzhugh Mullan
Date: 03/2019
Sponsoring organizations: Geiger Gibson Program in Community Health, George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health Department of Health Policy and Management, RCHN Community Health Foundation
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MedPAC Report to the Congress: Medicare Payment Policy, 2019
Annual review of Medicare payment policies, with recommendations to Congress. Includes discussion on Medicare payment policies directly affecting rural providers and beneficiaries. Addresses opioids, Medicare Part D, Medicare Advantage, Medicare's quality incentive program for hospitals, and payment adequacy for healthcare facilities and services.
Date: 03/2019
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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Perspectives From the Frontline of Two North American Community Paramedicine Programs: An Observational, Ethnographic Study
Discusses the motivations, job satisfaction, and challenges from the viewpoints of community paramedics and their managers in two independent programs in rural Ontario, Canada and Colorado, USA. Presents qualitative data derived through interviews, informal discussions, focus groups, and direct observation of practice.
Author(s): Angela C Martin, Peter O'Meara
Citation: Rural and Remote Health, 19(1), 4888
Date: 02/2019
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Strengthening Rural States' Capacity to Prepare for and Respond to Emerging Infectious Diseases, 2013-2015
Provides information for clinicians working in rural areas to effectively identify and respond to infectious disease. Highlights how state and local public health agencies from states having a high percentage of populations in rural areas, with support from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), have successfully strengthened their ability to respond to the growing threat of infectious diseases.
Author(s): Scott SantibaƱez, Kimberly Spencer Bellis, Allison Bay, et al.
Citation: Southern Medical Journal, 112(2), 101-105
Date: 02/2019
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Case Studies of 6 Safety Net Organizations That Integrate Oral and Mental/Behavioral Health With Primary Care Services
Features an analysis of 6 Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) integrating oral health and behavioral health with primary care across the country. Features one rural example.
Additional links: Policy Brief
Author(s): M. Langelier, S. Surdu, N. Goodwin
Date: 02/2019
Sponsoring organization: Oral Health Workforce Research Center
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The State of Primary Care Physician Workforce
State-level information describing the primary care physician workforce in 50 states and the District of Columbia. Features statistics including age, sex, training origin, distribution of physicians, percent of state population living in rural areas, and percent of physicians practicing in rural communities.
Date: 02/2019
Sponsoring organization: Robert Graham Center
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Evidence Brief: Video Telehealth for Primary Care and Mental Health Service
Details an investigation by the Veterans Health Administration into video telehealth as a means of delivering primary and mental healthcare to veterans. Highlights advantages for increasing access for rural veterans.
Additional links: Supplemental Materials
Author(s): Stephanie Veazie, Donald Bourne, Kim Peterson, Johanna Anderson
Date: 02/2019
Sponsoring organization: VA Health Systems Research, Office of Research & Development
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Practicing Medicine in Rural America: Listening to Primary Care Physicians
Reports on focus group research and interviews with primary care physicians regarding the challenges of serving rural, low-income patients. Highlights issues related to poverty, healthy food access, mental health, substance abuse, specialty care access, and transportation. Third post in the series "Listening to Primary Care Physicians for Low-Income Patients."
Author(s): Shanoor Seervai
Date: 02/2019
Sponsoring organization: Commonwealth Fund
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How Primary Care Affects Health Care Costs and Outcomes
Recording of a February 5, 2019, Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions hearing on the impact of primary care on healthcare outcomes and costs. Testimonies include rural-relevant considerations and address direct care primary care practices, employer strategies such as worksite clinics, the impact of Project ECHO, and more.
Additional links: Joshua J. Umbehr Testimony, Katherine Bennett Testimony, Sapna Kripalani Testimony
Date: 02/2019
Sponsoring organization: Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions
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Delivery of Preventive Oral Health Services by Rurality: A Cross-Sectional Analysis
Examines the integration of oral health and primary care as a method of increasing access to preventive oral health services for children under age 6 using 2012-2014 Medicaid claims data from 39 states. Includes patient characteristics, such as age, sex, and poverty level, as well as healthcare utilization rates, with breakdowns by metro and nonmetro counties.
Author(s): Caroline K. Geiger, Ashley M. Kranz, Andrew W. Dick, et al.
Citation: Journal of Rural Health, 35(1), 3-11
Date: 01/2019
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