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Rural Health Information Hub

Oral Health in Rural Communities – Resources

Selected recent or important resources focusing on Oral Health in Rural Communities.

Expanding the Dental Team: Studies of Two Private Practices
Analyzes two dental practices: Main Street Dental Care in Montevideo, MN, and Battlefords Dental Group in Saskatchewan, Canada. Also highlights dental therapists in Alaska. Discusses dentists being able to serve more privately insured and underserved patients, the increase in children and families who are able to get dental care who often go without, and how dental therapists help address critical problems surrounding access to dental care.
Date: 02/2014
Sponsoring organization: Pew Charitable Trusts
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Dental Services: Information on Coverage, Payments, and Fee Variation
Describes trends in dental services coverage and payments, and the extent of variation in dental fees in selected communities. Appendix II includes statistics comparing dental visit rates in urban and rural areas.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 09/2013
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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Rural America's Oral Health Care Needs
Provides an overview of rural America's oral healthcare needs. Includes recommendations for improving oral health in rural America.
Author(s): Anne Braswell, Nalo Johnson
Date: 02/2013
Sponsoring organization: National Rural Health Association
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Returning the Mouth to the Body: Integrating Oral Health & Primary Care
Describes how coordinating oral health and primary care services can address dental health disparities affecting vulnerable populations including those in rural and underserved areas.
Date: 09/2012
Sponsoring organization: Grantmakers in Health
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An Analysis of Oral Health Disparities and Access to Services in the Appalachian Region
Analyzes disparities in oral health status and access to oral healthcare in the Appalachian Region. Examines relationships between oral health disparities and socioeconomic status indicators. Focuses on aiding efforts to develop targeted interventions to reduce disparities in Appalachia.
Author(s): Denise D. Krause, Warren L. May, Nancy M. Lane, et al.
Date: 12/2011
Sponsoring organizations: Appalachian Regional Commission, The Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research
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Water Fluoridation and Dental Health Indicators in Rural and Urban Areas of the United States
Investigates the availability of fluoridated water across urban-rural settings, and relates measures of fluoride availability to national survey measures of dental health in adults and children.
Additional links: Policy Brief
Author(s): Michael Hendryx, Constance Weiner, Matthew Gurka
Date: 11/2011
Sponsoring organization: West Virginia Rural Health Research Center
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Improving Access to Oral Health Care for Vulnerable and Underserved Populations
Presents a vision for how to improve oral health care for vulnerable and underserved populations, and recommends ways to achieve this vision. Chapters include oral health status, workforce, expenditures, health care delivery, and oral health settings.
Additional links: Read Online
Date: 2011
Sponsoring organization: Health and Medicine Division (HMD), National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
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Advancing Oral Health in America
Discusses the challenges facing the current oral health system, the connection between oral health and overall health, and how to improve oral health care. Chapters 2 and 3 discuss the oral health system in rural settings.
Additional links: Read Online
Author(s): Committee on an Oral Health Initiative
Date: 2011
Sponsoring organization: Health and Medicine Division (HMD), National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
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Use of Emergency Departments for Conditions Related to Poor Oral Health Care
Reports findings from a study of seven states that looked at use of emergency departments to address oral health needs. Provides data for rural and urban areas and discusses the potential impacts of differences in state Medicaid policies.
Author(s): Emily F. Shortridge, Jonathan R. Moore
Date: 08/2010
Sponsoring organization: NORC Walsh Center for Rural Health Analysis
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NRHA National Rural Oral Health Initiative
Features resources, information, and best practices for policy makers, educators, and providers on delivering oral healthcare in rural communities. Presents resources on special topics, such as rural veterans oral health, water fluorination, and pediatric oral health, among other topics.
Sponsoring organization: National Rural Health Association
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Last Updated: 1/22/2025