Skip to main content
Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Recruitment and retention of health professionals

Health Care Access in the Heartland: How to Improve Services in Rural America
Outlines strategies policymakers and community leaders in rural America can use to improve healthcare access and services. Combines data analysis of county demographics and health data with focus groups in Arkansas, Kansas, Kentucky, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Tennessee. Provides expert interviews to better understand healthcare access in rural communities.
Author(s): Darren Chapman, Angie Cooper, Elizabeth Dombowsky, et al.
Date: 12/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Heartland Forward
view details
2022 Hospital Nurse Staffing Study: Rural and Critical Access Hospitals
Uses the 2022 Hospital Nurse Staffing Survey in Texas to compare nurse staffing in 49 Critical Access Hospitals (CAH), 45 rural non-CAHs, and 239 non-rural hospitals. Discusses vacancy, turnover, and budgeting for the nurse workforce.
Date: 11/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Texas Center for Nursing Workforce Studies, Texas Health and Human Services
view details
Access to Emergency Medical Services in Rural Communities: Policy Brief and Recommendations to the Secretary
Provides an overview of issues related to the provision of emergency medical services (EMS) in rural areas. Discusses rural EMS access, financing, and workforce challenges, as well as promising telehealth innovations. Outlines federal programs and resources that support EMS programs. Offers policy recommendations related to access to EMS, workforce, and reimbursement.
Date: 11/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services
view details
Is Being There Enough? Postgraduate Nurse Practitioner Residencies in Rural Primary Care
Examines the characteristics of rural and rural-serving postgraduate nurse practitioner (NP) residency programs, and the practices they use to determine if and how they enable recruitment, transition, and retention of NPs in rural primary care practice. Interviews were conducted with residency program directors, clinic personnel, and current and former NP residents, and analyzed to identify key themes and variations in program structure.
Author(s): Louise Kaplan, Samantha W. Pollock, Susan M. Skillman, Davis G. Patterson
Citation: Journal of Rural Health, 39(3), 529-534
Date: 11/2022
Type: Document
view details
Responding to One Rural Community's Primary Care Needs: Investing in Workforce and Broad Community Stakeholder Engagement
Commentary describing a model in which an academic health system in Rockingham County, North Carolina made targeted primary care investments to address rural health disparities while working to ensure sustainability within the health workforce. Examines challenges to improving rural health outcomes and offers suggestions for health systems seeking to replicate the Rockingham model.
Author(s): Sherry Hay, Emily M. Hawes, Alyssa Zamierowski, Stokes Ann Hunt, Cristen P. Page
Citation: North Carolina Medical Journal, 83(6), 435-439
Date: 11/2022
Type: Document
view details
Relationships Matter: How Usual is the Usual Source of (Primary) Care?
Explores trends in usual source of care (USC), with statistics on patient characteristics associated with USC and percent of the U.S. population with a USC, with breakdowns by payer type, race/ethnicity, and types of USC. Discusses shortages of primary care physicians in rural areas, and strategies for attracting, retaining, and diversifying primary care physicians in rural and underserved areas.
Author(s): Yalda Jabbarpour, Ann Greiner, Anuradha Jetty, et al.
Date: 11/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Primary Care Collaborative, Robert Graham Center
view details
CMS Framework for Advancing Health Care in Rural, Tribal, and Geographically Isolated Communities
Report outlines the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) plan for improving health equity and health outcomes across the U.S. for rural, tribal, and geographically isolated communities. Details a 6 priority framework emphasizing the application of a community-informed geographic lens; the collection and use of standardized data; support for healthcare professionals; the optimization of medical and communication technology; the expansion of access to comprehensive healthcare coverage, benefits, and services and supports; and innovation and value-based care. Highlights examples of activities CMS is undertaking in support of each priority and recent CMS efforts that align with each priority.
Date: 11/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
view details
Behavioral Health: Available Workforce Information and Federal Actions to Help Recruit and Retain Providers
Examines the available information on the behavioral health workforce, including federal data on the number of providers nationwide and the projection of the supply and demand for behavioral health providers in 2030. Identifies key barriers to recruiting and retaining behavioral health providers, as well as actions federal agencies have taken to support recruiting and retaining these providers. Outlines federal loan repayment, scholarship, and training programs designed to address workforce challenges in rural and other underserved areas.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 10/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
view details
Maternal Health: Availability of Hospital-Based Obstetric Care in Rural Areas
Explores the availability of hospital-based obstetric services in rural areas. Summarizes stakeholder perspectives on the factors affecting the availability of these services and on the efforts federal agencies, states, and others could take to increase the access to obstetric care. Highlights six programs identified by researchers and provider associations as effective at increasing obstetric care in rural areas.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 10/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
view details
Key Considerations for a Rural Hospital Assessing Conversion to Rural Emergency Hospital
Offers a conceptual framework of key considerations for rural hospitals contemplating conversion to a rural emergency hospital (REH). Covers financial feasibility, workforce, community impact, partnerships, and regulatory considerations.
Author(s): Kristin Reiter, TJ Grant, Susie Gurzenda, et al.
Date: 10/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: North Carolina Rural Health Research Program
view details