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Rural Health Information Hub
Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Project Examples: Service delivery models

Other Project Examples

Family Wellness Warriors Initiative
Updated/reviewed November 2020
  • Need: Decrease rates of domestic violence, child sexual abuse, and child neglect for Alaska Native people in remote villages.
  • Intervention: An evidence-based model inclusive of traditional culture trains local communities on methods of prevention and treatment for domestic and interpersonal violence.
  • Results: Self-sustaining local system with improved family and spiritual well-being and decreased healthcare access needs.
funded by the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy Miles for Smiles Mobile Dental Unit
Updated/reviewed September 2020
  • Need: Dental care access for children in low-income families living in a 7-county region of southwest Missouri.
  • Intervention: A mobile dental unit was created to expand dental care access.
  • Results: The Miles for Smiles mobile dental clinic provides comprehensive dental care to children throughout the 7-county region.
funded by the Health Resources Services Administration West Virginia's Partners In Health Network Regional Collaborative Services
Updated/reviewed September 2020
  • Need: Coordinated approach to healthcare delivery in central and southern West Virginia.
  • Intervention: Creation of a nonprofit organization that focused on quality and collaboration.
  • Results: With an ability to provide services that meet the evolving needs of patients, providers, and communities, the organization provides unique services, such as a credentialing service and web-based data sharing care management tool.
funded by the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy Catalina Island Telemedicine Center
Updated/reviewed August 2020
  • Need: To access specialty medical services, residents of Santa Catalina Island have to travel 20 miles by boat to southern California. A telemedicine service was needed to connect island residents to the mainland's specialty services.
  • Intervention: The Catalina Island Medical Center created a telemedicine center to give residents quick access to specialty medical care, including diabetic consultations and pain management.
  • Results: An analysis of the telemedicine program found that patients had measurable improvements, and that 90% of patients were pleased with the program and will continue to use it.
funded by the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy My Virtual Clinic School-Based Telehealth Program
Updated/reviewed May 2020
  • Need: Improve healthcare access for school-aged children in a rural and underserved Indiana county.
  • Intervention: Working with several rural school districts and the state's rural health association, an Indiana county healthcare system used school-based telehealth to expand access for acute illness.
  • Results: As of May 2019, Greene County General Hospital in rural Linton, Indiana, has expanded primary care access by offering school-based telehealth in 2 elementary and 1 middle school in 3 of the county's 5 school districts.
funded by the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy Medical Home Plus
Updated/reviewed February 2020
  • Need: To help reduce diabetes, depression, and stroke risk in rural residents.
  • Intervention: A collaborative care model was implemented in the Idaho counties of Clearwater, Idaho, and Lewis.
  • Results: Increased number of patients with controlled blood sugar, controlled blood pressure, and higher depression screening rates.
funded by the Health Resources Services Administration University of Mississippi Medical Center's Center for Telehealth
Updated/reviewed January 2020
  • Need: Rural areas in Mississippi often lack adequate access to specialty healthcare services such as emergency medicine, stroke neurology, pediatric specialists and psychiatrists.
  • Intervention: The University of Mississippi Medical Center created the Center for Telehealth to deliver quality specialty services through telehealth video conferencing and remote monitoring tools to the underserved areas of Mississippi.
  • Results: The program has been successfully implemented throughout many of the state's rural hospitals and has reduced transfers and geographic barriers for patients.
funded by the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy Bridges to Care Transitions-Remote Home Monitoring and Chronic Disease Self-Management
Updated/reviewed December 2019
  • Need: Decrease hospital readmissions and emergency room visits for patients in rural Tidewater, Virginia.
  • Intervention: After inpatient admission or ER visit, identify at-risk patients to offer enrollment in remote monitoring and disease self-management education and coaching, with a special focus on behavioral health wellness.
  • Results: Decreased readmissions and ER visits paired with high patient satisfaction scores.
COPD Readmission Prevention Program
Updated/reviewed December 2019
  • Need: Organized effort targeting COPD patients' medical needs in order to prevent hospital readmission in Zanesville, Ohio.
  • Intervention: Creation of an integrated system model using nurse navigators that incorporates evidence-based chronic disease care management approaches to COPD care.
  • Results: Improved readmission rates and overall improved acute and chronic care for the area's COPD patients.
Optimal Health Behavioral Health Home Models
Updated/reviewed December 2019
  • Need: A healthcare delivery model to improve health and well-being of Pennsylvania patients with serious mental illness in Pennsylvania, especially those in rural settings.
  • Intervention: County human service administrators, patients, families, a behavioral health provider network, and a nonprofit behavioral health managed care organization implemented 2 versions of a behavioral home health model focusing on a complete culture of wellness.
  • Results: These unique models significantly increased patient activation, engagement in both primary and specialty care, and improved client perception of their mental health status.

For examples from other sources, see: