Rural Health
Resources by State: Alaska
How Alaska Supports Rural and Frontier Behavioral Health Services
Describes Alaska's Behavioral Health Aide (BHA) program, a non-licensed provider type designed to promote behavioral health and wellness in Alaska Native individuals, families, and communities through culturally relevant training and education. Discusses qualifications for the BHA certification, payment, and next steps for other states seeking to develop similar programs.
Date: 10/2022
Sponsoring organization: National Academy for State Health Policy
view details
Describes Alaska's Behavioral Health Aide (BHA) program, a non-licensed provider type designed to promote behavioral health and wellness in Alaska Native individuals, families, and communities through culturally relevant training and education. Discusses qualifications for the BHA certification, payment, and next steps for other states seeking to develop similar programs.
Date: 10/2022
Sponsoring organization: National Academy for State Health Policy
view details
Alaska's Physician Workforce in 2021
Findings brief describing size, distribution, and education history of the physician workforce in Alaska. Features statistics on various specialties with breakdowns by urban, overall rural, large rural, small rural, and isolated small rural areas.
Author(s): Arati Dahal, Susan M. Skillman
Date: 07/2022
Sponsoring organizations: UW Center for Health Workforce Studies, Washington Area Health Education Center Program
view details
Findings brief describing size, distribution, and education history of the physician workforce in Alaska. Features statistics on various specialties with breakdowns by urban, overall rural, large rural, small rural, and isolated small rural areas.
Author(s): Arati Dahal, Susan M. Skillman
Date: 07/2022
Sponsoring organizations: UW Center for Health Workforce Studies, Washington Area Health Education Center Program
view details
Supporting Dental Therapy through Title VII Training Programs: A Meaningful Strategy for Implementing Equitable Oral Health Care - Nineteenth Annual Report to the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and to Congress
Offers policy and program development recommendations to the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services regarding primary care and dental training and education. Provides an overview of the importance of oral health, oral health disparities, and the dental therapy profession. Recommendations cover federal funding for dental therapy programs, dental therapy faculty and dental therapists' inclusion in loan forgiveness programs, and a longitudinal tracking mechanism for dental therapy trainees, faculty, and graduates. Highlights a dental therapy pilot program serving tribal communities in Alaska.
Date: 07/2022
Sponsoring organization: Advisory Committee on Training in Primary Care Medicine and Dentistry
view details
Offers policy and program development recommendations to the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services regarding primary care and dental training and education. Provides an overview of the importance of oral health, oral health disparities, and the dental therapy profession. Recommendations cover federal funding for dental therapy programs, dental therapy faculty and dental therapists' inclusion in loan forgiveness programs, and a longitudinal tracking mechanism for dental therapy trainees, faculty, and graduates. Highlights a dental therapy pilot program serving tribal communities in Alaska.
Date: 07/2022
Sponsoring organization: Advisory Committee on Training in Primary Care Medicine and Dentistry
view details
Mobile Health School Screening and Telemedicine Referral to Improve Access to Specialty Care in Rural Alaska: A Cluster-Randomised Controlled Trial
Study examining school-based telemedicine specialty referral for hearing loss in 15 rural Alaskan communities. Compares outcomes for participants who received a telemedicine specialty referral and who received a standard primary care referral, including time to follow-up, prevalence of hearing loss, hearing-related quality of life, and school performance.
Author(s): Susan D. Emmett, Alyssa Platt, Elizabeth L. Turner, et al.
Citation: The Lancet Global Health, 10(7), e1023-e1033
Date: 07/2022
view details
Study examining school-based telemedicine specialty referral for hearing loss in 15 rural Alaskan communities. Compares outcomes for participants who received a telemedicine specialty referral and who received a standard primary care referral, including time to follow-up, prevalence of hearing loss, hearing-related quality of life, and school performance.
Author(s): Susan D. Emmett, Alyssa Platt, Elizabeth L. Turner, et al.
Citation: The Lancet Global Health, 10(7), e1023-e1033
Date: 07/2022
view details
COVID-19 Cases, Hospitalizations, and Deaths Among American Indian or Alaska Native Persons — Alaska, 2020–2021
Examines COVID-19 health disparities impacting American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) people in Alaska from March 12, 2020–December 31, 2021. Discusses challenges to accessing healthcare, including living in rural and remote location. Also discusses the need for culturally competent health interventions.
Author(s): Lowrie A. Ward, Kelsey P. Black, Carla L. Britton, et al.
Citation: MMWR (Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report), 71(22), 730-733
Date: 06/2022
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
view details
Examines COVID-19 health disparities impacting American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) people in Alaska from March 12, 2020–December 31, 2021. Discusses challenges to accessing healthcare, including living in rural and remote location. Also discusses the need for culturally competent health interventions.
Author(s): Lowrie A. Ward, Kelsey P. Black, Carla L. Britton, et al.
Citation: MMWR (Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report), 71(22), 730-733
Date: 06/2022
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
view details
A Framework for Assessing Food-Energy-Water Security: A Few Case Studies from Rural Alaska
Discusses research methods related to food, energy, and water (FEW) and the development of a framework to assess FEW in communities based on availability, access, preference, and quality. Reports on the results of using this framework in 3 rural communities in Alaska. Discusses external and internal factors within the communities that contribute to food insecurity.
Author(s): Jennifer I. Schmidt, Barbara Johnson, Henry P. Huntington, Erin Whitney
Citation: Science of the Total Environment, 821
Date: 05/2022
view details
Discusses research methods related to food, energy, and water (FEW) and the development of a framework to assess FEW in communities based on availability, access, preference, and quality. Reports on the results of using this framework in 3 rural communities in Alaska. Discusses external and internal factors within the communities that contribute to food insecurity.
Author(s): Jennifer I. Schmidt, Barbara Johnson, Henry P. Huntington, Erin Whitney
Citation: Science of the Total Environment, 821
Date: 05/2022
view details
Healthy Alaskans 2030: State Health Improvement Plan
Provides an overview of the statewide health improvement plan and details the 30 health objectives to be met by 2030. Highlights objectives related to mental health, chronic disease incidence, healthcare access, disparities, and social determinants of health, among others.
Date: 02/2022
Sponsoring organizations: Alaska Department of Health, Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium
view details
Provides an overview of the statewide health improvement plan and details the 30 health objectives to be met by 2030. Highlights objectives related to mental health, chronic disease incidence, healthcare access, disparities, and social determinants of health, among others.
Date: 02/2022
Sponsoring organizations: Alaska Department of Health, Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium
view details
Evolving Perceptions of COVID-19 Vaccines among Remote Alaskan Communities
Highlights a study on COVID-19 vaccine acceptance among remote Alaskan communities. Details levels of vaccine hesitancy, vaccination, and feelings about the vaccine over the course of the pandemic. Breaks down participant data by age, race, and healthcare access, among other measures.
Author(s): Micah B. Hahn, Ruby L. Fried, Patricia Cochran, Laura P. Eichelberger
Citation: International Journal of Circumpolar Health, 81(1)
Date: 01/2022
view details
Highlights a study on COVID-19 vaccine acceptance among remote Alaskan communities. Details levels of vaccine hesitancy, vaccination, and feelings about the vaccine over the course of the pandemic. Breaks down participant data by age, race, and healthcare access, among other measures.
Author(s): Micah B. Hahn, Ruby L. Fried, Patricia Cochran, Laura P. Eichelberger
Citation: International Journal of Circumpolar Health, 81(1)
Date: 01/2022
view details
Impact of Assistance Programs on Indigenous Ways of Life in 12 Rural Remote Western Alaska Native Communities: Elder Perspectives Shared in Formative Work for the "Got Neqpiaq?" Project
Explores a study evaluating the perception of Alaska Native elders from the Yukon-Kuskokwim area of Alaska on the efficacy and cultural competence of government assistance programs. Discusses and evaluates a number of programs, such as Head Start, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and Special Supplemental Nutrition Program of Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), among others.
Author(s): Amanda K. Walch, Kathryn A. Ohle, Kathryn R. Koller, et al.
Citation: International Journal of Circumpolar Health, 81(1)
Date: 01/2022
view details
Explores a study evaluating the perception of Alaska Native elders from the Yukon-Kuskokwim area of Alaska on the efficacy and cultural competence of government assistance programs. Discusses and evaluates a number of programs, such as Head Start, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and Special Supplemental Nutrition Program of Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), among others.
Author(s): Amanda K. Walch, Kathryn A. Ohle, Kathryn R. Koller, et al.
Citation: International Journal of Circumpolar Health, 81(1)
Date: 01/2022
view details
COVID-10 Vaccines: Studying Historical Successes (and Failures) for Equity-Centered Approaches to Vaccinating Indigenous Communities, Undocumented Immigrants, and Communities of Color: Proceedings of a Workshop--In Brief
Proceedings of a public webinar focused on previous historical efforts to vaccinate people, highlighting what was successfully and what was unsuccessful. Panelists include the incident commander for managing COVID-19 on the Umatilla Indian Reservation, the chief medical officer for Alaska, a researcher with the Farmworker Association of Florida, the director of emergency social medicine at the University of Illinois College of Medicine, and a professor at the Loma Linda University School of Pharmacy.
Additional links: Read Online
Author(s): Board on Population Health and Public Health Practice
Date: 2022
Sponsoring organization: Health and Medicine Division (HMD), National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
view details
Proceedings of a public webinar focused on previous historical efforts to vaccinate people, highlighting what was successfully and what was unsuccessful. Panelists include the incident commander for managing COVID-19 on the Umatilla Indian Reservation, the chief medical officer for Alaska, a researcher with the Farmworker Association of Florida, the director of emergency social medicine at the University of Illinois College of Medicine, and a professor at the Loma Linda University School of Pharmacy.
Additional links: Read Online
Author(s): Board on Population Health and Public Health Practice
Date: 2022
Sponsoring organization: Health and Medicine Division (HMD), National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
view details