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The Rural Monitor
Articles by Topic: Healthcare needs and services

Online Screening Helps Michigan Men Gauge Mental Health

June 28, 2017
For the past few decades, suicide rates for working-aged men have been at a steep incline. Healthy Men Michigan is a unique campaign that evaluates the risk of depression and suicide in Michigan men through an anonymous online survey. Male-dominated industries and other organizations are drawn to the campaign's creative methods that appeal to working-aged men.

Feasting on Rural America: The Spread of Tick-Borne Diseases

May 17, 2017
Lyme and other tick-borne illnesses have become the most prolific zoonotic diseases in our nation. Because of their proximity to tick environments, rural areas are more susceptible. In this article, we hear from a Lyme disease patient, a scientist, psychiatrist, nonprofit leader, and a medical doctor about the spread and what's being done about it.

Animals Help People Heal in Rural Areas

December 14, 2016
Rural programs across the country rely on service or therapy animals to help people with mobility, motor skills, and mood. Come meet the service dogs of Hawaii, the therapeutic riding horses of Wyoming, and the therapy pig and tortoise who call a skilled nursing facility home in Florida.

Freestanding Emergency Departments: An Alternative Model for Rural Communities

November 30, 2016
First conceptualized in the 1970s, but not widely adopted in rural communities, freestanding emergency departments (FSEDs) have been getting another look as a sustainable rural option. This article discusses hospital-based versus independent FSEDs, the model's financial viability, and highlights two FSEDs meeting their communities' healthcare needs in Arizona and Illinois.

Pennsylvania Mobile Team Addresses Substance Use Disorders

November 16, 2016
In Pennsylvania, more people are dying from drug overdose than from car accidents. The FORHP-funded Addiction Recovery Mobile Outreach Team (ARMOT) program works to educate medical staff on addiction and recovery and to support patients as they navigate the recovery process.

Bringing Law and Medicine Together to Help Rural Patients

October 19, 2016
Much of a person's health is determined by social and environmental factors such as housing or access to healthcare. When these factors negatively affect a person's health, legal intervention combined with medical care may be the best treatment.