Rural Healthcare Workforce – Resources
Selected recent or important resources focusing on Rural Healthcare Workforce.
Physician Assistants: Modernize Laws to Improve Rural Access
National Rural Health Association policy paper describing benefits to rural communities when practice barriers are removed and payments are sufficient to attract physician assistants to the area. Includes recommendations to help achieve this goal.
Author(s): Roger Wells, Megan Cody, Robert Alpino, Melissa Van Dyne, Ross Abbott, et al.
Date: 04/2018
Sponsoring organization: National Rural Health Association
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National Rural Health Association policy paper describing benefits to rural communities when practice barriers are removed and payments are sufficient to attract physician assistants to the area. Includes recommendations to help achieve this goal.
Author(s): Roger Wells, Megan Cody, Robert Alpino, Melissa Van Dyne, Ross Abbott, et al.
Date: 04/2018
Sponsoring organization: National Rural Health Association
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Trends in Primary Care Provision to Medicare Beneficiaries by Physicians, Nurse Practitioners, or Physician Assistants: 2008-2014
Examines trends in elderly patients receiving primary care from physicians alone, physicians with nurse practitioners (NPs) and/or physician assistants (PAs), and NPs/PAs without physicians. Considered these models for delivering primary care to Medicare patients with multiple chronic conditions and Medicare patients in rural and health professional shortage areas (HPSAs).
Author(s): Ying Xue, James S. Goodwin, Deepak Adhikari, Mukaila A. Raji, Yong-Fang Kuo
Citation: Journal of Primary Care and Community Health, 8(4), 256-263
Date: 10/2017
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Examines trends in elderly patients receiving primary care from physicians alone, physicians with nurse practitioners (NPs) and/or physician assistants (PAs), and NPs/PAs without physicians. Considered these models for delivering primary care to Medicare patients with multiple chronic conditions and Medicare patients in rural and health professional shortage areas (HPSAs).
Author(s): Ying Xue, James S. Goodwin, Deepak Adhikari, Mukaila A. Raji, Yong-Fang Kuo
Citation: Journal of Primary Care and Community Health, 8(4), 256-263
Date: 10/2017
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Organizations Help Veterans Transition into Healthcare Careers
Highlights the work of the Multi-State Collaborative on Military Credit and the Consortium of Michigan Veterans Educators to help veterans pursue careers in healthcare. Discusses the role veterans have played in the past and continue to play in meeting the health workforce needs of rural communities. Identifies barriers veterans face transitioning to health careers.
Author(s): Allee Mead
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 10/2017
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Highlights the work of the Multi-State Collaborative on Military Credit and the Consortium of Michigan Veterans Educators to help veterans pursue careers in healthcare. Discusses the role veterans have played in the past and continue to play in meeting the health workforce needs of rural communities. Identifies barriers veterans face transitioning to health careers.
Author(s): Allee Mead
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 10/2017
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Accountable Care Organization Implementation Experiences and Rural Participation: Considerations for Nurses
Examines implications of Accountable Care Organization (ACO) development for advanced practice nurses and other primary care clinicians employed by rural practices such as Rural Health Clinics that may be considering ACO participation.
Author(s): Matt Thomas Bagwell, Angeline Bushy, Judith Ortiz
Citation: The Journal of Nursing Administration, 47(1), 30-34
Date: 01/2017
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Examines implications of Accountable Care Organization (ACO) development for advanced practice nurses and other primary care clinicians employed by rural practices such as Rural Health Clinics that may be considering ACO participation.
Author(s): Matt Thomas Bagwell, Angeline Bushy, Judith Ortiz
Citation: The Journal of Nursing Administration, 47(1), 30-34
Date: 01/2017
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Graduate Medical Education That Meets the Nation's Health Needs
Reviews the system supporting graduate medical education (GME) and discusses how it supports or creates barriers to the development of the physician workforce the nation needs. A section on geographic maldistribution on pages 43-44 discusses the rural physician workforce. The report also discusses GME issues related to rural health facilities, including Table 3-8 (p. 83), with data on rural hospital GME.
Additional links: Read Online
Author(s): Committee on the Governance and Financing of Graduate Medical Education
Date: 07/2014
Sponsoring organization: Health and Medicine Division (HMD), National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
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Reviews the system supporting graduate medical education (GME) and discusses how it supports or creates barriers to the development of the physician workforce the nation needs. A section on geographic maldistribution on pages 43-44 discusses the rural physician workforce. The report also discusses GME issues related to rural health facilities, including Table 3-8 (p. 83), with data on rural hospital GME.
Additional links: Read Online
Author(s): Committee on the Governance and Financing of Graduate Medical Education
Date: 07/2014
Sponsoring organization: Health and Medicine Division (HMD), National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
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Designating Health Professional Shortage Areas and Medically Underserved Populations/Medically Underserved Areas: A Primer on Basic Issues to Resolve
Includes discussion for interested parties considering issues related to the designation of Medically Underserved Areas (MUAs), Medically Underserved Populations (MUPs), and Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs). Describes key issues on how the designations establish eligibility for programs important to rural healthcare delivery.
Author(s): Andrew F. Coburn, Jennifer P. Lundblad, A. Clinton MacKinney, Timothy D. McBride, Keith J. Mueller
Date: 08/2010
Sponsoring organization: Rural Policy Research Institute Rural Health Panel
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Includes discussion for interested parties considering issues related to the designation of Medically Underserved Areas (MUAs), Medically Underserved Populations (MUPs), and Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs). Describes key issues on how the designations establish eligibility for programs important to rural healthcare delivery.
Author(s): Andrew F. Coburn, Jennifer P. Lundblad, A. Clinton MacKinney, Timothy D. McBride, Keith J. Mueller
Date: 08/2010
Sponsoring organization: Rural Policy Research Institute Rural Health Panel
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An Examination of the Healthcare Workforce Issues in Rural America
8th Annual Report to the Secretary of the United States Department of Health and Human Services and the United States Congress. Focuses on rural health workforce issues. Discusses improving rural healthcare through interdisciplinary training and quality improvement. Examines the rural health workforce by profession and looks at health workforce issues and trends.
Date: 09/2008
Sponsoring organization: Advisory Committee on Interdisciplinary Community-Based Linkages
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8th Annual Report to the Secretary of the United States Department of Health and Human Services and the United States Congress. Focuses on rural health workforce issues. Discusses improving rural healthcare through interdisciplinary training and quality improvement. Examines the rural health workforce by profession and looks at health workforce issues and trends.
Date: 09/2008
Sponsoring organization: Advisory Committee on Interdisciplinary Community-Based Linkages
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Behavioral Health Careers by State
Tool provides information on basic requirements for careers in the fields of mental health and substance use. Includes details on licensure needed, issuing agency, and license renewal requirements for each state.
Sponsoring organization: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
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Tool provides information on basic requirements for careers in the fields of mental health and substance use. Includes details on licensure needed, issuing agency, and license renewal requirements for each state.
Sponsoring organization: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
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Healthcare Workforce Starting Points
Explains how to use RHIhub to learn about and address issues related to the healthcare workforce.
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Explains how to use RHIhub to learn about and address issues related to the healthcare workforce.
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Behavioral Health Workforce Tracker
Interactive tool presenting state and county-level data on the behavioral health workforce between 2017 and 2021. Uses 2017-2021 IQVIA Xponent retail prescription data to identify prescribers of behavioral health medications and state licensure data from 2020 and 2021 to identify licensed clinical social workers, licensed professional counselors, and licensed marriage and family therapists.
Sponsoring organization: Fitzhugh Mullan Institute for Health Workforce Equity
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Interactive tool presenting state and county-level data on the behavioral health workforce between 2017 and 2021. Uses 2017-2021 IQVIA Xponent retail prescription data to identify prescribers of behavioral health medications and state licensure data from 2020 and 2021 to identify licensed clinical social workers, licensed professional counselors, and licensed marriage and family therapists.
Sponsoring organization: Fitzhugh Mullan Institute for Health Workforce Equity
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Additional resources are available related to this guide. See the full list of resources by topic for:
Last Updated: 4/7/2025