Conducting Rural Health Research, Needs Assessments, and Program Evaluations – Resources

NIH National Center for Advancing Translational Science: Involving Rural America in Research
Features translational science teams in Arkansas, Florida, and Washington that are helping ensure new scientific findings are being used in rural communities to help patients. Discusses community engagement, the role of the electronic health record in data sharing, and collaboration with cooperative extension.
Author(s): Kay Miller Temple
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 10/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
view details

Resources for Rural Community Health Needs Assessments and Community Health Improvement Plans
Provides basic information for rural health stakeholders interested in improving population health and health equity in rural communities through a community health improvement process (CHIP). Clarifies the differences between a Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) and a Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP), both components of the community health improvement process. Includes links to more in-depth information.
Date: 08/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Organization of State Offices of Rural Health
view details

Dissemination of Rural Health Research: A Toolkit
Offers health services researchers a variety of approaches and products to help communicate research findings to their target audience. Provides general guidelines, as well as advice related to specific product types, such as fact sheets and policy briefs, and to particular methods of communication, including social media.
Date: 08/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Research Gateway
view details

Selection Biases in Technology-based Intervention Research: Patients' Technology Use Relates to Both Demographic and Health-related Inequities
Details a study on selection bias in health research, specifically the patient characteristics of people with implantable cardioverter defibrillators who were not included in an intervention on the basis of their inability to access the internet or a computer. Looks at patient demographics, such as age, race, education, and rural status, among other measures.
Author(s): Tammy Toscos, Michelle Drouin, Jessica Pater, et al.
Citation: Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association, 26(8-9), 835–839
Date: 08/2019
Type: Document
view details

A Guide for Rural Health Care Collaboration and Coordination
Describes how rural hospitals, community health centers, local public health departments, and other organizations can work together to identify health needs in their community and develop partnerships and strategies to help address these needs. Identifies areas of collaboration and coordination. Includes networking and collaboration case studies in rural Missouri and North Dakota. Provides a template and discussion questions for developing partnerships.
Date: 08/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Health Resources and Services Administration
view details

Planning, Conducting and Leveraging Primary Care Office Needs Assessments
Issue brief highlighting components unique to primary care offices (PCOs) and offering resources on promising practices. Intended to build knowledge regarding PCO needs assessment.
Citation: NOSORH Issue Brief, 1(3)
Date: 07/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Organization of State Offices of Rural Health
view details

Measuring Access to Care in National Surveys: Implications for Rural Health
Policy position brief reviewing access measures used in major national surveys and discussing implications for rural research on access to care. Features tables showing surveys, populations studied, and geographic measures; example survey questions for each access domain; and access to care measures in nationally-representative surveys.
Author(s): Carrie Henning-Smith, Ashley M. Hernandez, Hannah Neprash, Megan Lahr
Date: 06/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center
view details

CDC as a Rural Resource: Q&A with Diane Hall
An interview with Diane Hall, Senior Policy Analyst at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Highlights CDC's work in rural health, the role of data collection in program evaluation, and how rural communities can use CDC as a resource.
Author(s): Allee Mead
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 03/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
view details

Community-Engaged and Culturally Relevant Research to Develop Behavioral Health Interventions with American Indians and Alaska Natives
Describes in detail the process of developing a community engaged and culturally sensitive research approach intervention for American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) populations that was used to establish substance abuse and violence prevention programs.
Author(s): McKinley, C.E., Figley, C.R., Woodward, S.M., et al.
Citation: American Indian and Alaska Native Mental Health Research, 26(3), 79-103
Date: 2019
Type: Document
view details

Utility and Generalizability of Multi-State, Population-Based Cancer Registry Data for Rural Cancer Surveillance Research in the United States
Analyzes various cancer registries to determine the usability of these sources in rural cancer surveillance research. Includes data from 2009-2013 on rural and urban cancer incidence rates by cancer site and race/ethnicity.
Author(s): Whitney Zahnd, Wiley Jenkins, Aimee James, et al.
Citation: Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, 27(11), 1252-1260
Date: 11/2018
Type: Document
view details