For more information and resources, see the California state guide.
January 19, 2022
Peggy Broussard Wheeler, Vice President of Policy at the California Hospital Association, discusses the challenges that the hospitals in her state and nationwide have faced before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. She also shares rural hospitals' unique strengths and the importance of collaboration and relationships.
September 22, 2021
HRSA's Rural Residency Planning and Development (RRPD) Program supports organizations developing new rural residency programs. Three grantees – St. Luke's University Health Network in Pennsylvania, Baptist Memorial Hospital in Mississippi, and Sutter Health in California – share what the RRPD grant has allowed them to accomplish so far.
June 30, 2021
On the list of leading causes of death, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD, impacts millions of rural Americans and their quality of life. Though limited treatments are available for COPD, research indicates that pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) provides major benefits, yet is currently under-prescribed and facing challenges from COVID-19 and from reimbursement policies. Researchers discuss the potential that tele-PR might bring to rural areas, and rural healthcare leaders highlight the benefits of their PR programs for service areas.
July 15, 2020
Advance care planning — planning for decision-making in times of medical crisis — has always been intended for all people, all ages, with or without a chronic disease. Clinicians talk about the challenges of these conversations now that COVID-19 has nudged planning from the realm of the theoretical future to current reality.
June 3, 2020
Vaping among teens is on the rise, and rural teenagers have little access to cessation programs. California-based Being Adept and two Tennessee counties are helping their students learn how vaping negatively impacts their health while My Life, My Quit is helping teens in 18 states quit.
April 17, 2019
Wildfires. Child abuse. Sexual assault. The negative and ongoing effects of these experiences are the reason communities and medical providers are using an approach called trauma-informed care. This article features ways trauma is understood and treated in a rural community, a Wyoming pediatrician's clinic, and for nurses providing assault exams.
January 9, 2019
Highlighting eye care as more than prescribing glasses, an optometrist explains how the medical model of optometry brings additional health benefits to rural patients.
October 31, 2018
The benefits of palliative care are described as "the heart of healthcare." Experts and advocates share the importance of scaling this care to rural outpatients with serious illness and chronic medical conditions.
August 22, 2018
USDA Assistant to the Secretary for Rural Development Anne Hazlett shares perspectives on healthcare needs and healthcare delivery challenges from information gained as she travels rural America.
November 13, 2017
In rural communities, a little bit can go a long way. Learn how three Federal Office of Rural Health Policy awardees have used their funds to enhance healthcare access and create sustainable change.
