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Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health Disparities – Resources

Selected recent or important resources focusing on Rural Health Disparities.

Inequities in Availability of Evidence-Based Birth Supports to Improve Perinatal Health for Socially Vulnerable Rural Residents
Examines the social risk factors rural residents face related to maternal and infant mortality. Utilizes data from 285 rural hospitals across the United States that have inpatient birthing centers to measure the availability of maternal and postpartum supports such as breastfeeding support groups, nurse home visiting, childbirth education classes, and more. Evaluates each hospital's social vulnerability index (SVI) on the county-level to determine the level of birth support inequities in rural areas and for residents who are Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC).
Author(s): Bridget Basile Ibrahim, Julia D. Interrante, Alyssa H. Fritz, Mariana S. Tuttle, Katy Backes Kozhimannil
Citation: Children, 9(7), 1077
Date: 07/2022
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Wiping Away the Tears: Addressing Increasing Death in Rural America
Examines rural mortality trends and discusses the impact of the opioid epidemic and COVID-19 pandemic, as well as rural maternal and infant mortality. Describes federally-funded efforts to address rural disparities.
Author(s): Whitney Zahnd
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 07/2022
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Life Expectancy by County, Race, and Ethnicity in the USA, 2000–19: A Systematic Analysis of Health Disparities
Examines county-level racial health disparities over a 20-year period by isolating geography and race/ethnicity in mortality rates. Utilizes death registration data from the U.S. National Vital Statistics System as well as population data from the U.S. National Center for Health Statistics. Includes U.S. maps that show county-level life expectancy by race/ethnicity and figures tracking state-by-state changes in life expectancy by race from 2000 to 2019. Free to download with registration.
Author(s): Laura Dwyer-Lindgren, Parkes Kendrick, Yekaterina O Kelly, et al.
Citation: The Lancet, 400(10345), 25-38
Date: 07/2022
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Advancing Health Equity in Rural America
Report examining rural health equity, covering rural economic and demographic data, disparities by rurality, race/ethnicity, and class, and examples of initiatives that aim to increase health equity in rural communities. Offers recommendations for increasing health equity through economic and policy actions.
Additional links: Executive Summary
Author(s): Paula Braveman, Julia Acker, Elaine Arkin, Katrina Badger, Nicole Holm
Date: 06/2022
Sponsoring organization: Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
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Self-Rated Health Among Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual Adults: Rural/Urban Differences
Policy brief examining differences in self-rated health by sexual orientation and rural or urban location. Includes statistics from the National Health Interview Survey, the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, and the Health Information National Trends Survey.
Author(s): Hannah MacDougall, Carrie Henning-Smith, Courtney Sarkin, Gilbert Gonzales
Date: 06/2022
Sponsoring organization: University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center
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Implementation of a Maternal Child Knowledgebase
Describes the development and implementation of the Maternal-Child Knowledgebase (MCK), an Obstetrics and Gynecology-focused enterprise data warehouse that integrates pregnancy and care data for patients of the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics to facilitate maternal and women's health surveillance and research. Offers an overview of the MCK architecture, interface, security, and data governance, and notes the need for maternal and child health data to address rural disparities.
Author(s): Donna A. Santillan, Mark K. Santillan, Heather A. Davis, et al.
Citation: AMIA Annual Symposium Proceedings Archive, 2022, 432-438
Date: 05/2022
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Evaluation of the Rural Maternity and Obstetrics Management Strategies Program: 2019 Cohort - Second Annual Report
Reports on the Rural Maternity and Obstetrics Management Strategies (RMOMS) program 2019 cohort's first implementation year, 2020-2021. Describes the program, the need for increased access to maternal and obstetric care in rural areas, and the program's strategic goals. Provides an overview of the 3 RMOMS awardees in Missouri, New Mexico, and Texas, including network characteristics, model and goals, health equity efforts, sustainability, and maternal health outcomes.
Additional links: Executive Summary
Date: 05/2022
Sponsoring organization: Health Resources and Services Administration
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Hypertensive Disorders in Pregnancy and Mortality at Delivery Hospitalization — United States, 2017–2019
Examines the prevalence of hypertensive disorders in pregnancy among delivery hospitalizations. Includes data for metropolitan, micropolitan, and rural (nonmetro/nonmicro) counties on prevalence of any hypertension, chronic hypertension, pregnancy-related hypertension, and unspecified maternal hypertension.
Author(s): Nicole D. Ford, Shanna Cox, Jean Y. Ko, et al.
Citation: MMWR (Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report), 71(17), 585–591
Date: 04/2022
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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2022 County Health Rankings National Findings Report
Analyzes county-level health disparities by examining health factors and outcomes throughout the U.S. Covers living wages, the pay gap between men and women, childcare costs, school funding, and more. Discusses impacts of COVID-19, key findings, and calls to action to improve community health outcomes.
Date: 04/2022
Sponsoring organization: County Health Rankings & Roadmaps
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Individual and Neighborhood Influences on the Relationship Between Waist Circumference and Coronary Heart Disease in the REasons for Geographic and Racial Differences in Stroke Study
Explores a study correlating the waist circumference with incidence of coronary heart disease and discusses the influence of geography and socioeconomic factors, such as race, poverty, and rurality, among others. Breaks down data by individual and ecological characteristics.
Author(s): Anne H. Gaglioti, Desiree Rivers, Joanna Bryan Ringel, et al.
Citation: Preventing Chronic Disease, 19
Date: 04/2022
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Last Updated: 11/12/2024