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Rural Health Information Hub
Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health
News by Topic: Health workforce

May 15, 2026 - North Dakota is launching an initiative to support rural and tribal healthcare providers in implementing suicide risk screening, follow-up care, and improved referral pathways to mental health and behavioral healthcare services. About 164 North Dakotans died by suicide in 2025.
Source: North Dakota Health & Human Services
May 15, 2026 - The University of Nebraska Medical Center has opened a new $95 million building on the Rural Health Education Complex in Kearney, allowing the campus to offer medicine, pharmacy, and public health programs for the first time. The number of healthcare students on the Kearney campus is expected to double, to about 625.
May 15, 2026 - Interview with former Mayo Clinic lead lab technologist Jim Checkel, who has developed a curriculum to train future rural healthcare providers and researchers. Since buying a Minnesota farm in 1992 Checkel has hosted over 12,000 people at events where students learn about agriculture-related topics, including mechanical injuries and diseases related to farming.
Source: The Daily Yonder
May 15, 2026 - The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) has awarded Vibrant Emotional Health $255 million to administer a suicide and crisis hotline. The 988 Lifeline allows people to reach crisis counselors 24/7 for help with a mental health, suicide, or substance use crisis.
Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
May 15, 2026 - Notice from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) seeking comments on forms related to the VA Health Professional Scholarship Program (HPSP) and Visual Impairment and Orientation and Mobility Professionals Scholarship Program (VIOMPSP). The information collected is used for VA to determine an applicant's eligibility to receive a scholarship award and compliance with program requirements. Comments are due by July 14, 2026.
Source: Federal Register
May 13, 2026 - Notice from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Office of Minority Health (OMH) seeking comments on the reinstatement of an information collection titled "OMH Think Cultural Health." The Think Cultural Health (TCH) website is an initiative of HHS OMH that provides resources and tools to promote cultural and linguistic competency in health and healthcare. The information collected will be used to enable health and healthcare professionals to register for courses; obtain accredited continuing education credits; and help ensure that TCH offerings remain relevant, useful, and responsive to the needs of their target audiences. Comments are due by June 12, 2026.
Source: Federal Register
May 13, 2026 - The University of Maine at Augusta (UMA) hosted a Rural Workforce Medical Bootcamp at its Bangor campus on May 12. The event gave high school students a close-up look at opportunities in nursing, dental health, medical laboratory technology, and mental health and human services in Maine.
Source: University of Maine at Augusta
May 12, 2026 - A 5-year grant from the Health Resources and Services Administration has enabled Pennsylvania to launch the 'Healthy Moms, Vibrant Futures' maternal health strategic action plan, focusing on reducing maternal mortality and morbidity. Twenty-three rural counties in Pennsylvania do not have hospitals offering labor and delivery services.
Source: WVIA
May 11, 2026 - The Dolly Parton Children's Hospital, formerly known as East Tennessee Children's Hospital, is expanding pediatric care, particularly in rural communities. The hospital serves about 20 counties in the region, and its new pediatric residency program will begin in summer 2027.
Source: Knox News
May 11, 2026 - Highlights the dangers of grain bin entrapment, profiling a rescue operation in Switzerland County, Indiana. A grain rescue tube developed at Purdue University was used successfully by first responders who had practiced with it regularly.
Source: FarmProgress