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Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Access

In a Maternity Desert, a New Kind of Home Visitation Program Brings Care to At-Risk Mothers
Features Project Swaddle, a community paramedic program that provides education, support, and medical care to pregnant and postpartum patients in rural Indiana.
Author(s): Gretel Kauffman
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 08/2023
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Study Protocol for a Multi-Level Cross-Sectional Study on the Equitable Reach and Implementation of Coordinated Specialty Care for Early Psychosis
Examines ways to improve outreach and access to rural and underserved communities in relation to coordinated specialty care (CSC) for early psychosis. Discusses the creation of a geospatial database of CSC programs in the U.S. that includes program-level data, provider-level data, and neighborhood-level census data.
Author(s): Oladunni Oluwoye, Ari Lissau, Sheldon Stokes, et al.
Citation: Implementation Science Communications, 4, 90
Date: 08/2023
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Bridging the Gaps in Women's Primary Care for Those Treated at a Residential Drug Treatment Facility in Southwest Ohio
Analyzes access to primary healthcare for women in a residential substance use disorder (SUD) facility in rural Southwest Ohio. Considers factors such as substance use, mental health, sexual transmitted infections (STIs), and reproductive health in relation to primary care needs.
Author(s): Anna Squibb, Bradley Subler, Tongfan Wu, Vijay K. Rings, Khadijah C. Collins
Citation: Ohio Journal of Public Health, 6(1)
Date: 08/2023
Sponsoring organization: Ohio Public Health Association
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Forming Partnerships to Increase Rural Immunization Rates
Discusses barriers to vaccine uptake in rural communities. Describes how two community organizations worked to increase vaccinations in rural Alabama and how a network led by the National Center for Farmworker Health built the capacity to distribute COVID-19 vaccines and build vaccine confidence among migrant farmworkers. Identifies state considerations for implementing community-based programs to increase vaccinations in rural areas.
Author(s): Shalini Nair, Heather Tomlinson
Date: 08/2023
Sponsoring organization: Association of State and Territorial Health Officials
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Stressful Life Events and Healthcare Utilization Among U.S. Children Aged 2–17 Years
Examines parent-reported stressful life events, which are a subset of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), and a series of healthcare utilization outcomes among children. Table 1 includes metro/nonmetro data on children who experienced any stressful life events.
Author(s): Lindsey I. Black, Amanda E. Ng, Benjamin Zablotsky
Date: 08/2023
Sponsoring organization: National Center for Health Statistics
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Characterizing Rugged Terrain in the United States
Analyzes the impact of rugged terrain on travel barriers and community development in U.S. Census tracts, with a focus on the relationship between terrain, rurality, and low-income areas. Presents two representations of topographic variability: the Area Ruggedness Scale and the Road Ruggedness Scale. Includes related maps and data applying the scales to regions, states, and rural and urban areas of the U.S.
Author(s): Elizabeth A. Dobis, John Cromartie, Ryan Williams, Kyle Reed
Date: 08/2023
Sponsoring organization: USDA Economic Research Service
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Palliative Care Needs and Preferences of Older Adults with Advanced or Serious Chronic Illnesses and their Families in Rural Communities of Indiana, USA
Presents the experiences of caregivers in rural Indiana related to palliative care, the needs of older adults with chronic illnesses, and the impacts on their families. Discusses themes such as managing pain, caregiver trust, distance and access to care, managing difficult conversations, caregiver burden, and use of telehealth in rural areas.
Author(s): Nasreen Lalani, Kawther Hamash, Yitong Wang
Citation: Journal of Rural Health, 40(2), 368-375
Date: 08/2023
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Tracking The Elusive Medicaid Workforce To Improve Access
Discusses challenges to evaluating Medicaid enrollees' access to primary care providers. Describes how the Fitzhugh Mullan Institute for Health Workforce Equity used the Transformed Medicaid Statistical Information System (T-MSIS) to examine the primary care workforce providing healthcare to Medicaid enrollees. Outlines Medicaid workforce policy challenges, including federal regulations, workforce composition and supply, and community and market factors.
Author(s): Candice Chen, Qian "Eric" Luo, Mandar Bodas, et al.
Citation: Health Affairs Forefront
Date: 08/2023
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Meals on Wheels and Rural Communities, with Carter Florence and Shon Gress
An episode of the Exploring Rural Health podcast featuring Carter Florence, DrPH, MPH, Vice President of Programs with Meals on Wheels America, and Shon Gress, CEO and Executive Director of Meals on Wheels Guernsey County. Focuses on the benefits of the program, the impact of braided funding, and how rural stakeholders can get involved.
Date: 08/2023
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Where You Live Matters: Maternity Care Deserts and the Crisis of Access and Equity
Provides interactive state-by-state data on maternity care deserts in the U.S. Focuses on access, distance to maternity care, availability of family planning services, disparities in prenatal care, chronic health conditions and preterm birth, policy solutions, and more. Includes county-level maps of data as well as accompanying state summaries, infographics, and downloadable reports.
Date: 08/2023
Sponsoring organization: March of Dimes
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