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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Social determinants of health

Rural Public Health and Health Care: A Scan of Field Practice and Trends
Offers a historical overview of rural healthcare and rural public health theories and practice methods and describes newer theories, such as value-based care, personalized medicine, social determinants of health, and health in all policies. Outlines trends in public health and healthcare, including community engagement, evidence-based decision making, and delivery integration, discussing rural implications of these trends.
Date: 09/2021
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Aspen Institute
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A Qualitative Assessment of Barriers and Facilitators Associated with Addressing Social Determinants of Health among Members of a Health Collaborative in the Rural Midwest
Examines capacities and barriers in addressing social determinants of health for patients in rural Northeastern Minnesota and Northwestern Wisconsin based on interviews from 37 participants of a healthcare collaborative. Discusses specific needs of rural providers, including access to community-based social services, aligned payment models, and capacity for collaboration, among others.
Author(s): Kim Nichols Dauner, Lacey Loomer
Citation: BMC Health Services Research, 21
Date: 08/2021
Type: Document
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Arkansas Child Obesity Growth Patterns and Evaluations of Preschool Interventions on Obesity in Kindergarten
Study examining body mass index (BMI) growth in Arkansas children between Kindergarten and Grade 8 using data from the Arkansas Department of Education and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Organizes data based on gender, race/ethnicity, social determinants of health (SDOH) indicators, and by rural and urban location. Discusses case studies of Kindergarten weight intervention programs.
Author(s): Anthony Goudie, Kanna Lewis, Joseph Thompson
Date: 08/2021
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Arkansas Center for Health Improvement
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Leveraging Evidence-Based Policies to Improve Health, Control Costs, and Create Health Equity
Explores health inequities and healthcare access in marginalized populations, including racial and ethnic minority groups, sexual and gender minorities, people living in poverty and in rural communities, and people formerly incarcerated. Discusses strategies and policies to reduce inequities focused on access to healthcare, economic mobility, affordable housing, safe learning environments for young adults and children, and health-promoting excise taxes.
Author(s): Adam Lustig, Marilyn Cabrera
Date: 07/2021
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Trust for America's Health
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Physical Activity Barriers and Assets in Rural Appalachian Kentucky: A Mixed-Methods Study
Study examining barriers, resources, and community support for physical activity to address obesity in rural Appalachia, focusing on Martin County, Kentucky. Describes data related to physical activity, social determinants of health, and physical environment for a cohort of 152 people and 34 focus group participants.
Author(s): Natalie Jones, Dierdre Dlugonski, Rachel Gillespie, et al.
Citation: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 18(14), 7646
Date: 07/2021
Type: Document
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Crosscutting Environmental Risk with Design: A Multi-site, Multi-city Socioecological Approach for Iowa's Diversifying Small Towns
Examines the intersection of built environments and environmental design with factors exacerbating health disparities in 3 small Iowa towns. Discusses how study results may be used by small towns to prioritize investments in built environments for vulnerable populations.
Author(s): Benjamin Shirtcliff, Rosie Manzo, Rachel Scudder
Citation: PLoS ONE, 16(6)
Date: 06/2021
Type: Document
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47th Annual Arizona Rural Health Conference
Offers presentation slides and video recordings from the 2021 Annual Arizona Rural Health Conference. Covers a wide variety of topics including infrastructure needs in rural communities, telehealth and distance learning, prevention efforts to address social determinants of health, and more.
Date: 06/2021
Type: Video/Multimedia
Sponsoring organization: Arizona Center for Rural Health
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Midwest Initiative Seeks to Reduce Opioid Use in Rural and Tribal Communities
Profile of the Midwest Tribal Opioid Meta-Evaluation (MTOM) and the American Indian Resource and Resiliency Team (AIRRT), an Opioid Use Disorder treatment partnership serving American Indian communities in Minnesota and the Northern Plains. Describes the process of conducting a meta-evaluation and the program's activities.
Author(s): Beth Connolly, Leslie Paulson
Date: 06/2021
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Pew Charitable Trusts
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Exploring the Role of Critical Health Literacy in Addressing the Social Determinants of Health
Brief reporting on a workshop held by the Roundtable on Health Literacy that explored Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) and health literacy to serve vulnerable communities. Discusses SDOH models, research methods to engage communities, and critical health literacy. Project examples include work with rural Native American communities.
Author(s): Board on Population Health and Public Health Practice
Date: 06/2021
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Health and Medicine Division (HMD), National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
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Patterns in COVID-19 Vaccination Coverage, by Social Vulnerability and Urbanicity — United States, December 14, 2020–May 1, 2021
Examines vaccination coverage by rurality and social vulnerability. Includes data for metropolitan and nonmetro areas for four levels of social vulnerability and by type of vulnerability, based on the CDC social vulnerability index (SVI).
Author(s): Vaughn Barry, Sharoda Dasgupta, Daniel L. Weller, et al.
Citation: MMWR (Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report), 70(22), 818-824
Date: 06/2021
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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