Rural Project Examples Addressing Healthcare needs and services

Together With Veterans Rural Suicide Prevention Program

Updated/reviewed July 2025

Need: Suicide among veterans has been steadily increasing, and rural veterans have an increased risk of death by suicide compared to urban veterans.
Intervention: A program called Together with Veterans was formed to help rural communities address and prevent suicides among veterans. The initiative is veteran-led, collaborative, evidence-based, and community-centered.
Results: Data collection is ongoing.

Updated/reviewed June 2025

Need: To reduce youth suicide rates.
Intervention: First begun in Utah, Hope Squad is a nationwide program that trains youth to identify peers' signs of distress and connect them to help. Hope Squads educate the entire student body to increase connectedness and reduce stigma.
Results: Studies suggest that Hope Squad schools' students with suicidal thoughts are more likely than non-Hope Squad schools' students to solicit help. In addition, stigma surrounding mental illness is decreasing.

Updated/reviewed June 2025

Need: Teen pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases, and mental health challenges in adolescent girls were concerns for members of Union Parish, Louisiana.
Intervention: Union General Hospital, a Critical Access Hospital, created the program It's a Girl Thing: Making Proud Choices to teach prevention, self-confidence, personal responsibility, and mental well-being to teen girls.
Results: Teen pregnancy rates in Union Parish have dropped by more than 40% since the start of the program, significantly exceeding the program's initial goal of 5%. Graduation rates have also increased. The addition of Together We Can Be Bully Free as an integral part of It's a Girl Thing has further expanded mental health support for participants.

Updated/reviewed June 2025

Need: Transportation to medical appointments for children and expectant mothers living in rural Alabama.
Intervention: Kid One Transport provides rides to medical appointments for clients who otherwise have no other means of transportation.
Results: The program has transported 477,880 children and expectant mothers to and from medical appointments. Children have recovered from life-threatening illnesses and are experiencing a higher quality of life.

Updated/reviewed June 2025

Need: To improve maternal and birth outcomes in rural and underserved areas by increasing the number of family medicine physicians in these areas who have high-quality, evidence-based obstetrical care skills.
Intervention: The STRETCH-OB program trains a select number of family medicine residents at the University of Illinois College of Medicine Rockford each year to provide high-quality maternity care, including surgical obstetrical care.
Results: Four STRETCH-OB residents have graduated as of June 2025 and all have cesarean section privileges in their practice.

Updated/reviewed June 2025

Need: To create a safe space for youth and young adults, ages 14 to 25, in rural eastern Kentucky.
Intervention: The Sapling Center provides independent living skills education and offers a wide array of services as well as fun activities in a supportive environment.
Results: The 5 Sapling Center locations serve 50-75 teens and young adults every day.

Updated/reviewed June 2025

Need: Union Parish, a rural county in Louisiana, continues to experience elevated rates of youth suicide, bullying, mental health challenges, and risk behaviors, as confirmed by a 2024 Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA).
Intervention: Union General Hospital, a Critical Access Hospital, started a program to educate students grade 4 through 12 on the negative effects of bullying, to foster positive social behavior, and to provide mental health support through school-based interventions.
Results: Over 3,500 students have learned how to recognize, report, and respond to bullying. The program's integration with broader community health priorities has strengthened mental health, reduced suicide attempts, and improved awareness of youth risk behaviors.

Updated/reviewed May 2025

Need: To provide affirming, destigmatized healthcare and support to thousands of Tennesseans living with HIV/AIDS, mental illness, substance use disorder, and homelessness – and prevention services for individuals at risk of contracting HIV.
Intervention: Positively Living & Choice Health Network provides services including a medical clinic, pharmacy, therapy, case management, client services like housing aid and transportation, HIV prevention, and a harm reduction program.
Results: The program currently serves 5,000 individuals and families through its offices in Knoxville, Chattanooga, Memphis, and Cookeville and its mobile medical unit for rural communities in Cocke and Claiborne counties.

Updated/reviewed May 2025

Need: To improve students' access to behavioral health services in rural North Carolina.
Intervention: North Carolina Project ACTIVATE provides three tiers of behavioral health supports in the school setting.
Results: The six pilot sites (Cohorts 1 and 2) have created or revised 91 mental health policies, and 48,531 school-based and related employees have received training in different topics and protocols.

Updated/reviewed May 2025

Need: To connect patients to resources in order to reduce use of emergency services, emergency department visits, and hospital readmissions.
Intervention: Patients receive support (by in-person visit, phone call, or telehealth visit) from a paramedic, community health nurse, peer recovery specialist, and pharmacist.
Results: Between July 2016 and March 2024, the program made 1,098 patient contacts and continued to see a reduction in emergency department and inpatient visits and costs.