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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Emergency department and urgent care services

Utilization and Adherence in Medical Homes: An Assessment of Rural-Urban Differences for People with Severe Mental Illness
Discusses whether enrollment in medical homes improves care in rural versus urban settings for people with severe mental illness (SMI). Examines utilization measures of primary care, mental health, emergency department, inpatient hospitalizations, and medication adherence using data derived from North Carolina Medicaid claims from 2004–2007.
Author(s): Mona Kilany, Joseph P. Morrissey, Marisa Elena Domino, et al.
Citation: Medical Care, 56(10), 870-876
Date: 10/2018
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Access in Brief: Rural and Urban Health Care
Compares healthcare access and use of services for children and adults with Medicaid to those with private insurance or no insurance for both rural and urban areas and for adults with disabilities. Includes access data by age group, income, and race/ethnicity, and utilization data for office and emergency room visits. Addresses access to prescription drugs and eyeglasses as well as barriers to healthcare access.
Date: 10/2018
Sponsoring organization: Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission
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Telestroke Adoption among Community Hospitals in North Carolina: A Cross-sectional Study
Discusses the advantages of implementing telestroke in rural acute care hospitals, including Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs), where stroke mortality is higher than in urban settings. Identifies the community and hospital characteristics associated with the adoption of the telestroke approach in acute care hospitals in North Carolina.
Author(s): Christopher M. Shea, Amir Alishahi Tabriz, Kea Turner, Steve North, Kristin L. Reiter
Citation: Journal of Stroke and Cerebrovascular Diseases, 27(9), 2411-2417
Date: 09/2018
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Health Services Utilization in Asthma Exacerbations and PM10 Levels in Rural Colorado
Study examining the relationship between increased air levels of particulate matter with a diameter below 10 micrometers (PM10) and the number of asthma-related emergency/urgent visits and hospitalizations (EUH) in rural Colorado. Includes average EUHs and PM10 concentrations by day of week, month, and year from 2003-2012. Provides data from a biethnic population of White and Hispanic/Latino individuals, including breakdowns by age.
Author(s): Katherine James, Matthew Strand, Mika Hamer, Lisa Cicutto
Citation: Annals of the American Thoracic Society, 15(8), 947-954
Date: 08/2018
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Overview of Pediatric Emergency Department Visits, 2015
Reports on pediatric emergency department (ED) visits in 2015. Compares pediatric and adult ED visits by three types: all ED visits, treat-and-release ED visits, and ED visits resulting hospital admission. Table 2 provides statistics on the type of ED visit and pediatric patient characteristics including patient residence, such as metropolitan, micropolitan, and noncore areas.
Author(s): Kimberly W. McDermott, Carol Stocks, William J. Freeman
Date: 08/2018
Sponsoring organization: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
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Trends in the Utilisation of Emergency Departments in California, 2005–2015: A Retrospective Analysis
Examines the characteristics of patients utilizing California's emergency departments (EDs) regarding age, sex, race/ethnicity, payer, and urban/rural residence, using data from the California Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development.
Author(s): Renee Y Hsia, Sarah H Sabbagh, Joanna Guo,Thomas J Nuckton, Matthew J Niedzwiecki
Citation: BMJ Open, 8(7)
Date: 07/2018
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MedPAC Report to the Congress: Medicare and the Health Care Delivery System, June 2018
Evaluates Medicare payment issues and offers recommendations to the U.S. Congress. Includes a chapter on ensuring appropriate access to and use of hospital emergency department (ED) services that provides extensive information on rural access to ED services and identifies examples of rural off-campus emergency departments. Other sections of the report addressing rural concerns focus on post-acute care, quality and value payment programs, and medical device payment policies. Also includes a report on the effects of the Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program.
Additional links: Fact Sheet
Date: 06/2018
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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Evaluating National Program to Improve Access to Acute Stroke Services for Rural Veterans
Features a study on the Veterans Health Administration's efforts to improve access to acute stroke services for rural veteran populations. Discusses the National TeleStroke Program (NTSP) and it's impact on rural veterans.
Date: 06/2018
Sponsoring organization: VA Health Systems Research, Office of Research & Development
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The Interaction Between Rural/Urban Status and Dual Use Status among Veterans with Heart Failure
Details a study on hospitalization and emergency department use by veterans with heart failure who use VA-only services or use a combination of VA and other healthcare services. Examines the role of urban and rural status in the veterans healthcare utilization rates.
Author(s): Kelly J Hunt, Mulugeta Gebregziahber, Charles J Everett, Paul A Heidenreich, Robert Neal
Citation: Rural and Remote Health, 18(2), 4495
Date: 05/2018
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Implementation of the MEDFRAT to Promote Quality Care and Decrease Falls in Community Hospital Emergency Rooms
Examines the implementation of Memorial Emergency Department Fall-Risk Assessment Tool (MEDFRAT), an evidence based fall-risk assessment tool, in 12 emergency departments part of a rural health care system in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and North Dakota.
Author(s): Catherine A. McCarty, Theo A. Woehrle, Stephen C. Waring, Allise M. Taran, Laura A. Kitch
Citation: Journal of Emergency Nursing, 44(3), 280-284
Date: 05/2018
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