Rural Mental Health – Resources

Mental Health Service Use, Suicide Behavior, and Emergency Department Visits Among Rural US Veterans Who Received Video-Enabled Tablets During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Results of a study to examine whether a United States Veterans Affairs initiative to distribute video-enabled tablets during the COVID-19 pandemic was associated with mental healthcare access, suicide behavior, or emergency department (ED) visits among rural veterans. Features demographics and statistics on mental health services use and ED visits, with breakdowns by tablet recipients and nonrecipients.
Author(s): Kritee Gujral, James Van Campen, Josephine Jacobs, et al.
Citation: JAMA Network Open, 5(4)
Date: 04/2022
Type: Document
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Mental Health Care in the United States: The Case for Federal Action
Bipartisan report summarizing findings from three Senate Finance Committee hearings and a request for information regarding challenges in the mental healthcare system. Describes the prevalence of behavioral health conditions in the United States, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, and spending on behavioral health. Outlines key challenges across five cross-cutting areas: the behavioral health workforce; children, adolescents, and young adults; access to care, integration, and care coordination; mental health and substance use disorder (SUD) parity; and telehealth. Includes information on challenges facing rural and underserved communities.
Date: 03/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Senate Committee on Finance
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Strengthening Federal Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Programs: Opportunities, Challenges, and Emerging Issues
Presents a full committee hearing of the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions discussing the current state of federal mental health and substance use disorder programs. Features testimonies from representatives of the Heath Resources and Services Administration, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, the National Institute of Mental Health, and the National Institute on Drug Abuse.
Additional links: Carole Johnson Testimony, Joshua A. Gordon Testimony, Miriam E. Delphin-Rittmon Testimony, Nora D. Volkow Testimony
Date: 03/2022
Type: Video/Multimedia
Sponsoring organization: Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions
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The Role of Race in Rural-Urban Suicide Disparities
Explores the role race-ethnicity plays in understanding the rural-urban disparity in rates of suicide among Veterans Health Administration (VHS) patients. Breaks down data by race, age, and rural versus urban location, among other measures.
Author(s): Talya Peltzman, Daniel J. Gottlieb, Maxwell Levis, Brian Shiner
Citation: Journal of Rural Health, 38(2), 346-354
Date: 03/2022
Type: Document
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Association Between Mental Health and Oral Health Status and Care Utilization
Highlights a study on the correlation between oral and mental health issues. Examines factors that contribute to poor mental and oral health status. Details participants' household income, insurance status, and whether they live in a metro or non-metro area, among other factors.
Author(s): Tamanna Tiwari, Abigail Kelly, Cameron L. Randall, et al.
Citation: Frontiers in Oral Health, 2, 732882
Date: 02/2022
Type: Document
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Mental Health in Rural Areas
Policy position paper focused on mental health in rural areas. Discusses barriers and policy recommendations regarding the availability, access, and acceptability of mental health care in rural communities.
Author(s): Brenda Mack, Heather Whetsell, Janessa M. Graves
Date: 02/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Rural Health Association
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PCORI Virtual Briefing on Suicide Prevention in Youth and Young Adults: Watch the Briefing
Discusses suicide risk in young adults and how the issue has been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Includes expert panel discussion and conversations around increased risk in rural areas, as well as information on PCORI-funded research on youth suicide.
Date: 02/2022
Type: Video/Multimedia
Sponsoring organization: Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute
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Mental Health Surveillance Among Children — United States, 2013–2019
Examines mental disorders and indicators of poor mental health among children, mental health services for children, and positive indicators of mental health, based on data from nine federal surveillance systems. Includes rural data on attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder; behavioral or conduct problems; depression; anxiety; autism spectrum disorder; Tourette syndrome; substance use disorder, alcohol use disorder, and/or illicit drug use disorder; suicidal ideation and suicide attempts; receipt of mental health treatment, services, and medication; and positive indicators of mental health.
Author(s): Rebecca H. Bitsko, Angelika H. Claussen, Jesse Lichstein, et al.
Citation: MMWR (Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report) Supplements, 71(2), 1-42
Date: 02/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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Changes in Suicide Rates — United States, 2019 and 2020
Reports counts and age-adjusted suicide rates during 2019 and 2020 for different populations. Includes data for metropolitan, micropolitan, and noncore areas overall and by sex.
Author(s): Daniel C. Ehlman, Ellen Yard, Deborah M. Stone, et al.
Citation: MMWR (Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report), 71(8), 306-312
Date: 02/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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Meeting the Behavioral Health Needs of Farm Families in Times of Economic Distress
Offers strategies to support development and integration of behavioral health services across healthcare and community-based organizations, including leveraging payment systems to support coordinated care for farm families and aligning federal grant programs to address mental health and substance use disorders. Features recommendations including integrating primary and behavioral care for initial treatment of mental health and substance abuse concerns, expanding the workforce to improve rural behavioral health services capacity, increasing telehealth services, and expanding private and public insurance coverage.
Author(s): Andrew F. Coburn, Alva O. Ferdinand, Alana Knudson, et al.
Date: 02/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural Policy Research Institute Rural Health Panel
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