Skip to main content
Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Access

Menominee Nation, WI: 2015 Culture of Health Prize Winner
Describes how members of the Menominee Nation of Wisconsin are using a trauma-informed care model that provides social and behavioral health services to address the root causes of the excessive high school dropout rate within their tribal community. By recognizing the two main causes, poverty and trauma, healthcare providers were able to adjust their approach to patient-centered care and offer same day appointments, providing the help when needed. Menominee Nation is a recipient of the 2015 Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's Culture of Health Prize.
Date: 10/2015
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
view details
The Rural Obstetric Workforce in US Hospitals: Challenges and Opportunities
Details a study of the obstetric workforce and access to obstetric services in rural areas. Analyzes the results of a survey of 306 rural hospitals across the U.S. from November 2013 - March 2014. Discusses possible policy and training modifications for rural hospitals based on the study's conclusions.
Author(s): Katy B. Kozhimannil, Michelle M. Casey, Peiyin Hung, et al.
Citation: Journal of Rural Health, 31(4), 365-372
Date: 10/2015
Type: Document
view details
Colorectal Cancer Burden and Access to Federally Qualified Health Centers in California
Examines the geographic variation in late-stage diagnosis of colorectal cancer in California compared to distance to a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC), the poverty level of the patient population, rural residence, and their access to a private vehicle.
Author(s): Brendan Darsie, Jennifer Rico, Madhurima Gadgil, Joshua Tootoo
Citation: Preventing Chronic Disease, 12
Date: 10/2015
Type: Document
view details
Beyond Rural Walls: Identifying Impacts and Interdependencies Among Rural and Urban Spaces - A Survey of Literature
Discusses the economic benefits of broadband distribution and usage in business, education, healthcare, and public safety in rural and urban areas. Describes the interdependencies between rural and urban broadband, and the impact of rural broadband utilization on urban areas.
Author(s): Joshua Seidemann
Date: 10/2015
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: NTCA: The Rural Broadband Association
view details
OIG Advisory Opinion No. 15-13
Advisory opinion from the Office of Inspector General (OIG) concerning a proposal for free transportation services between certain medical facilities as a part of a rural, integrated health system.
Date: 10/2015
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Office of Inspector General (HHS)
view details
Diffusion of Physicians and Access To Primary Care: The Role of Person, Program, and Place
Examines factors which influence physicians' decisions to move into or out of Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs) and analyzes characteristics that may cause counties to gain or lose HPSA designation, using data from 2006, 2011, and 2013. Includes statistics with breakdowns such as change in physician-to-population ratio in urban, rural HPSA, and rural non-HPSA counties from 2010 to 2012, rates of inter-county and inter-state moves among physicians from 2006 to 2013, and characteristics of physicians by category of move.
Author(s): Thomas C. Ricketts
Date: 10/2015
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: The Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research
view details
A Cross-Sectional Study on Health Differences Between Rural and Non-Rural U.S. Counties Using the County Health Rankings
Examines the rural and urban differences in health and healthcare within the U.S. using data accessed from the 2013 County Health Rankings and Roadmaps. Vital health factors evaluated include mortality, morbidity, health behaviors, clinical care, social and economic factors, and the physical environment.
Author(s): Timothy J. Anderson, Daniel M. Saman, Martin S. Lipsky, M. Nawal Lutfiyya
Citation: BMC Health Services Research, 15, 441
Date: 10/2015
Type: Document
view details
Disparities in Patterns of Health Care Travel Among Inpatients Diagnosed With Congestive Heart Failure, Florida, 2011
Investigates the nonclinical factors that motivate patients with congestive heart failure (CHF) to travel greater distances to seek treatment rather than utilize their local hospital service area. Study was based on 2011 individual hospital discharge data and analyzes the odds of local hospitalization and various predictors of travel time including race, ethnicity, payer, severity of the condition, and rural/urban patient location.
Author(s): Peng Jia, Imam M. Xierali
Citation: Preventing Chronic Disease,12
Date: 09/2015
Type: Document
view details
Challenges of Rural Cancer Care in the United States
Highlights the impact of rurality affecting the care of rural cancer patients and healthcare providers treating cancer patients. Discussion includes the availability of cancer specialists, limited transportation services, lower socioeconomic status, health insurance coverage, less access to clinical trials, and the shortage of palliative and end-of-life staff and services.
Author(s): Mary Charlton, Jennifer Schlichting, Catherine Chioreso, et al.
Citation: Oncology (Williston Park), 29(9), 633-640
Date: 09/2015
Type: Document
view details
Free Clinics in the Rural Safety Net, 2014
Examines availability and location of free clinics across the U.S. Highlights challenges faced by free clinics, including challenges associated with the implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA).
Additional links: Key Facts
Author(s): Amy Martin, Grishma Bhavsar, Lauren Workman, Janice C. Probst
Date: 09/2015
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural and Minority Health Research Center (formerly the South Carolina Rural Health Research Center)
view details