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Rural Health
Resources by State: Kentucky

Assessing Chronic Pain Among Adults Diagnosed with Diabetes Residing in Rural Appalachia
Examines the associations of comorbidity, disability, and depression with chronic pain among a sample of 356 adults with diabetes in 6 rural Appalachian Kentucky counties. Features demographics and statistics on self-reported health status.
Author(s): Brittany L. Smalls, Adebola Adegboyega, Courtney Ortz, et al.
Citation: Journal of Appalachian Health, 6(3), 79-92
Date: 10/2024
Type: Document
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Psychosocial Factors, Stress and Sleep Among Rural Appalachian Kentucky Residents with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus
Results of a study examining whether psychosocial factors were associated with perceived stress and self-reported sleep deficiency, among 318 people with type 2 diabetes mellitus in 6 counties in rural Appalachian Kentucky. Features demographics and statistics on the association between perceived stress and sleepiness, and depression with perceived stress.
Author(s): Blake DiPaola, Zoe Taylor, Eric Hennemann, et al.
Citation: Journal of Appalachian Health, 6(3), 50-65
Date: 10/2024
Type: Document
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Charting a Path to Comprehensive Healthcare for Rural Veterans, with Matt Coleman and James VanCleave
An episode of the Exploring Rural Health podcast featuring Matt Coleman, Director of the Kentucky State Office of Rural Health, and James VanCleave, Rural Project Manager, Veterans Services for the KORH. Focuses on their work helping veterans access services and receive care and benefits from the VA and other providers.
Date: 10/2024
Type: Audio
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Examining Use of Telehealth in Jails: Linking Women to Community OUD Services
Evaluates the Justice Community Opioid Innovation Network's (JCOIN) use of telehealth for opioid use disorder (OUD) assessment and linkage to medications to treat opioid use disorder (MOUD) services at community re-entry for 600 women incarcerated in Kentucky jails. Examines participants' access to treatment, participants' and providers' perceptions of telehealth, and other aspects of program implementation. Discusses barriers to care in a predominantly rural population.
Author(s): Michele Staton, Mary Levi, Erin Winston, et al.
Citation: BMC Women's Health, 24, 549
Date: 10/2024
Type: Document
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Increasing Vaccine Confidence in Rural Communities of South-Central Kentucky
Provides educational resources, data, and advice for community leaders and healthcare professionals to promote vaccine confidence in rural south-central Kentucky. The included toolkit provides in-depth discussion of rural attitudes toward vaccination, strategies for effective communication, and information on rural vaccination disparities.
Additional links: Getting to "YES" for Routine Vaccines: A Toolkit to Increase Vaccine Confidence for Rural Communities in Kentucky
Date: 08/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: American Lung Association
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Appalachian Diseases of Despair
Provides information on Appalachian mortality disparities due to overdose, suicide, and alcoholic liver disease/cirrhosis among people ages 15-64. Utilizes data from the 2022 Multiple Cause of Death database broken down by Appalachian state, region, gender, and metropolitan or nonmetropolitan status.
Date: 08/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Appalachian Regional Commission, East Tennessee State University Center for Rural Health Research, NORC Walsh Center for Rural Health Analysis
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Strategies Used to Reduce Harms Associated with Fentanyl Exposure among Rural People Who Use Drugs: Multi-Site Qualitative Findings from the Rural Opioid Initiative
Explores strategies utilized by rural people who use drugs to reduce fentanyl-related harm. Analyzes interviews with 349 people who recently used opioids or injection drugs in 10 states. Discusses awareness of fentanyl contamination, highlights perspectives on common harm reduction strategies, and describes public health applications. Includes state-by-state comparisons of participant demographic data.
Author(s): Suzan M. Walters, Robin Baker, David Frank, et al.
Citation: Harm Reduction Journal, 21, 154
Date: 08/2024
Type: Document
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2024 Workforce Survey Report: The Status of Kentucky's Hospital Workforce
Provides an in-depth look at non-physician direct care positions in inpatient or hospital-related outpatient departments in Kentucky as of 2023. Includes statistics on vacancies, benefits, and pay, with breakdowns by rural and urban areas.
Author(s): Maik Schutze
Date: 08/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Kentucky Hospital Association
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Community-Level Factors and their Associations with Changing Opioid Overdose Fatality Rates in Kentucky, 2019–2021
Identifies associations between community-level factors and opioid overdose fatality rates in Appalachian and non-Appalachian Kentucky counties, and examines how these associations have changed from 2019 to 2021. Discusses societal changes that occurred due to COVID-19, including social isolation, and which may be linked to an increase in overdose deaths. Features statistics with breakdowns by metropolitan, adjacent-to-metropolitan, and nonmetropolitan areas.
Author(s): Shawn R. Nigam, Philip M. Westgate, Svetla Slavova, Rachel Vickers-Smith, Katherine L. Thompson
Citation: Journal of Appalachian Health, 6(1), 90-115
Date: 07/2024
Type: Document
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Feasibility and Efficacy of a Novel Audiovisual Tool to Increase Colorectal Cancer Screening among Rural Appalachian Kentucky Adults
Examines an audiovisual tool to improve understanding of fecal immunochemical tests (FIT) directions and assesses the tool's feasibility, acceptability, and efficacy in an Appalachian population of Kentucky. Utilizes survey data and focus group feedback from 692 individuals to examine FIT completion. Discusses colorectal cancer (CRC) incidence and mortality and strategies to improve screening.
Author(s): Aaron J. Kruse-Diehr, Derek Cegelka, Elizabeth Holtsclaw, et al.
Citation: Public Health, 12
Date: 07/2024
Type: Document
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