Rural Project Examples Addressing Populations - Rural Health Information Hub

Updated/reviewed February 2024

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 February 2024

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 40,572 school-based and related employees have received training in different topics and protocols.

Updated/reviewed January 2024

Need: Hawai'i is experiencing a severe shortage of family medicine physicians.
Intervention: The Hawai'i Island Family Medicine Residency (HIFMR) program uses an interprofessional team-based approach so residents learn how to care for many types of patients in different healthcare settings.
Results: Since 2017, HIFMR has graduated a class of 3 to 6 Board-certified family medicine physicians annually. Most graduates have remained in the state to practice medicine; those who have left have entered fellowship programs and plan to return to Hawai'i Island to practice.

Updated/reviewed January 2024

Need: To increase access to healthy foods in two rural Nevada counties.
Intervention: HCC and the Rural Health and Nutrition Initiative (RHNI) run food pantries, assist with community and school gardens, and have a farmers market during the summer.
Results: The three food pantries together serve about 3,600 people and distribute over 100,000 pounds of food each month.

Updated/reviewed January 2024

Need: Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICUs) across the state of South Carolina were purchasing breast milk from out-of-state milk banks for preterm infants.
Intervention: The Mother's Milk Bank of South Carolina (MMBSC) opened 26 sites in South Carolina for breast milk to be donated, safely pasteurized, and delivered to NICUs across the state.
Results: Over 19,178,739 ounces of milk have been donated to MMBSC depot sites and over 13,830,600 ounces of milk have been delivered to South Carolina NICUs.

Updated/reviewed January 2024

Need: To foster relationships with American Indian people in New Mexico to determine culturally appropriate practices in reducing nicotine addiction.
Intervention: NUPAC provides outreach, community programs, and cessation services.
Results: In fiscal year 2023, 1,333 QUIT NOW and DEJELO YA quit line enrollees stopped using tobacco.

Updated/reviewed January 2024

Need: To connect underserved and isolated older adults in rural Minnesota, Montana, North Dakota, and South Dakota to services and supports so they can age in place.
Intervention: The Rural Aging Action Network is a collaborative of organizations that offer different services like caregiver support, behavioral health, financial counseling, and assistance with chores and household maintenance.
Results: Since 2015, the collaborative has reached over 4,000 older adults and caregivers in over 100 rural communities.

Updated/reviewed December 2023

Need: Drowning was a leading cause of death for children in Alaska.
Intervention: Cold Water Safety and Survival for Educators workshops were developed in 1998, with help from a 4-year federal grant, to train educators to provide education and hands-on skills for school children and members of the public.
Results: The safety program was integrated into about 50% of Alaskan school curriculum and schools in other states, helping to train hundreds of educators and thousands of children on the importance of cold water safety.

Updated/reviewed December 2023

Need: To bring low-cost water and sanitation improvements to homes in Alaska Native villages without access to piped water or sewer systems.
Intervention: The Portable Alternative Sanitation System (PASS) treats hauled water, provides for handwashing with clean water, and disposes waste without traditional piping.
Results: Residents in the pilot project reported that PASS was cleaner and healthier than the self-haul method.

Updated/reviewed December 2023

Need: Agencies in Schoharie County, New York were seeing a widespread trend of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) in the children and families they served.
Intervention: The Schoharie ACEs Team was formed as a way to educate rural communities about ACEs, the associated brain science, and ways to build resiliency.
Results: The ACEs Team has put on 5 half-day educational conferences, 2 virtual conferences, and 10 trainings for various groups across the region. The team has also trained 3 school districts on trauma-informed care and provided resources for families exposed to trauma.

Rural Project Examples: Populations