Rural Health
News by Topic: Health occupations
Mar 16, 2026 - Notice from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) seeking comments on proposed revisions to an information collection request titled "Bureau of Health Workforce Health Workforce Connector OMB No. 0906-0031-Revision." The Health Workforce Connector (HWC) provides a central platform to connect participants, including but not limited to those in the National Health Service Corps (NHSC), Nurse Corps Scholarship and Loan Repayment Programs (Nurse Corps), Substance Use Disorder Treatment and Recovery (STAR) Loan Repayment Program, Pediatric Specialty (PS) Loan Repayment Program, Nursing Training, and Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education (THCGME) programs with facilities that are approved for their programs. Comments are due by April 15, 2026.
Source: Federal Register
Mar 15, 2026 - Discusses pharmacist-led point-of-care testing as a strategy to increase access to acute care in rural areas. Notes challenges in advancing that strategy including insurance reimbursement and regulations.
Source: Drug Topics
Mar 13, 2026 - Announces a plan to create a Center for Rural Health at Northwest Missouri State University. The goal of the Center is to train Missouri healthcare workforce to fill gaps in rural areas in the region. Describes the nursing workforce shortage in the area.
Source: Northwest Missouri State University Media Center
Mar 12, 2026 - Highlights a dentist practicing in rural Louisiana following graduation from a rural-focused track in his dental program. Describes the distribution of dentists in Louisiana, noting that 86% of Louisiana residents live in a Dental Health Professional Shortage Area.
Source: LSU Stories
Mar 10, 2026 - Discusses sexual assault nurse examiner (SANE) shortages across Kentucky, particularly in rural areas where case volume and access to training are limited. Describes the impacts of SANE shortages for assault survivors and state policy measures being considered to address the shortage.
Source: WPSD Local 6
Mar 10, 2026 - Describes the maternal healthcare workforce distribution in North Carolina and health disparities for rural residents where there are workforce shortages. Notes that recent policy measures aiming to increase rural access with certified nurse midwives has not fully addressed the shortage. Discusses the potential for doulas to fill the gap.
Source: NC Newsline
Mar 9, 2026 - Summarizes comments from a HIMSS26 Healthcare Cybersecurity Forum discussing cybersecurity for rural hospitals. Covers topics including regional collaboration, communicating with facility administration, and cybersecurity workforce.
Source: Healthcare IT News
Mar 9, 2026 - Promotes mobile clinics as a delivery model for effective maternal health outreach in rural and other communities. Highlights maternity care deserts nationally and in Florida. Discusses successful use of the model in Florida for maternity care, noting that few of the nationally tracked mobile clinics offer maternal and infant healthcare.
Source: The Conversation
Mar 6, 2026 - Profiles a labor and delivery department in a rural North Carolina Critical Access Hospital. Maternity services were re-started in 2020 using family physicians after closing the department in 1991. Describes maternity care access across North Carolina, challenges with sustaining the service for rural communities, and how they can be a model to other rural communities.
Source: North Carolina Health News
Mar 5, 2026 - Highlights the new Medical Laboratory Sciences Extended Internship Program at an Arkansas university. The program aims to reduce rural medical laboratory staff shortages in Arkansas and nearby states by training local students. An increase in rural lab staff would both speed up lab processing times and decrease the cost of care.
Source: UAMS News