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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Social connectedness

Integrating Culture and History to Promote Health and Help Prevent Type 2 Diabetes in American Indian/Alaska Native Communities: Traditional Foods Have Become a Way to Talk About Health
Reports on the implementation of the Traditional Foods Project (TFP), a community-based intervention to promote access to and integration of traditional foods, physical activities, and social support in culturally and geographically diverse American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) communities.
Author(s): Lemyra DeBruyn, Lynne Fullerton, Dawn Satterfield, Melinda Frank
Citation: Preventing Chronic Disease, 17
Date: 02/2020
Type: Document
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Social Isolation and Loneliness in Older Adults: Opportunities for the Health Care System
Examines how social isolation and loneliness affect health and quality of life in adults aged 50 and older, with a focus on vulnerable populations, including those living in rural areas. Makes recommendations for clinical settings on screening for negative health impacts related to social isolation and developing interventions to help address this issue.
Additional links: Read Online
Author(s): Committee on the Health and Medical Dimensions of Social Isolation and Loneliness in Older Adults
Date: 2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Health and Medicine Division (HMD), National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
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Loneliness in the United States: A 2018 National Panel Survey of Demographic, Structural, Cognitive, and Behavioral Characteristics
Highlights a cross-sectional study on loneliness in adults in the U.S. Aims to evaluate rates of loneliness by age group, gender, race, and urban or non-urban location, as well as by several other measures. Bases conclusions on the results of a national survey of 20,096 adults.
Author(s): Liana DesHarnais Bruce, Joshua S. Wu, Stuart L. Lustig, Daniel W. Russell, Douglas A. Nemecek
Citation: American Journal of Health Promotion, 33(8), 1123-1133
Date: 11/2019
Type: Document
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The Impact of Geographic Isolation on Mental Disability in the United States
Examines the association between geographic isolation and mental disability using the 2000 decennial census and supplementary county-level data from other sources. Analyzes factors including social isolation, socioeconomic status, and income inequality. Discusses theoretical explanations for the relationship between isolation and mental disability, and summarizes other factors which were not modeled in the study but which may be associated with poor mental health outcomes in rural areas.
Author(s): Christopher G. Hudson, Nathan J. Doogan
Citation: SSM - Population Health, 8, 100437
Date: 08/2019
Type: Document
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Promoting Positive Mental Health in Rural Schools
Provides resources and information to assist with the mental health training and technical assistance needs of schools, administrators, teachers, support staff, and others serving rural and remote communities and students. Profiles a rural student who faces a variety of challenges, such as food insecurity, limited access to providers, drug use, mental health, social isolation, and more.
Author(s): Thomasine Heitkamp, Sarah Nielsen, Shawnda Schroeder
Date: 08/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Mental Health Technology Transfer Center Network
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Psychosocial Supports in Medication-Assisted Treatment: Site Visit Findings and Conclusions
Profiles 5 programs that offer medication-assisted treatment (MAT) for opioid use disorder (OUD), including several with rural components. Covers psychosocial support offered, staffing and staff training, collaboration and coordination, financing, data collection and quality improvement, lessons learned, and next steps for each program. Discusses the aspects of psychosocial support that are most important for positive outcomes, types of psychosocial support being used, and factors helping or impeding psychosocial support implementation, including stigma and workforce challenges. Appendix B reviews the literature on psychosocial support in MAT.
Additional links: Appendix B: Psychosocial Supports in Medication-Assisted Treatment: Recent Evidence and Current Practice
Author(s): Garrett Moran, Hannah Knudsen, Caroline Snyder
Date: 07/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: HHS Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation
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The Rural-ness of Social Isolation: Information from Recent Public Health Research
Dr. Carrie Henning-Smith, deputy director of the University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center, explains how social isolation and loneliness impact rural Americans, based on information from her team's recent studies.
Author(s): Kay Miller Temple
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 07/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Social Isolation and Loneliness: Insights from Rural Clinical Providers and Other Experts
Provides an overview of social isolation and loneliness and the factors, such as limited transportation options, that can contribute to these problems in rural areas. Includes discussion of social risk assessments. Features rural clinicians, researchers, and other experts sharing their perspectives on addressing these concerns.
Author(s): Kay Miller Temple
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 07/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Behavioral and Clinical Characteristics of American Indian/Alaska Native Adults in HIV Care — Medical Monitoring Project, United States, 2011–2015
Reports on sociodemographic, behavioral, and clinical characteristics of American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) patients in HIV care. Includes information on stigma, healthcare discrimination, social supports, depression, substance use, sex without a condom, antiretroviral therapy adherence, and viral suppression.
Author(s): Amy R. Baugher, Linda Beer, Heather M. Bradley, et al.
Citation: MMWR (Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report), 67(5152), 1405-1409
Date: 01/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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Aging in Appalachia
Episodes of the radio program "Inside Appalachia," exploring challenges faced by elderly people in Appalachia, and the resources available to them. Topics include caregiver shortages, Alzheimer's disease, dying with dignity, and isolation and loneliness.
Date: 2019
Type: Website
Sponsoring organization: West Virginia Public Broadcasting
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