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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Health occupations

Home-Based Care for Chronic Kidney Disease
Provides an update to the story of the Zuni people of western New Mexico and the health conditions they commonly face: chronic kidney disease and diabetes. Describes the Home-Based Kidney Care model to train tribal members fluent in Zuni to become community health workers. The community health workers visit patients weekly, providing them with education on healthy lifestyles, medication support, and data collection. The original story, published in July 2014, is included at the end of the update.
Date: 03/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute
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Evaluation of Provider Network in the Iowa Dental Wellness Plan, 2014-2016
Reports on Iowa's Dental Wellness Plan (DWP) provider network established due to the poor oral health status of low-income residents and need for dental care within the state. Compares the first and second year of the DWP using outcomes measures that include dentist supply and distance to the nearest dentist in metropolitan and non-metropolitan areas.
Author(s): Susan McKernan, Mark Pooley, Aparna Ingleshwar, Elizabeth Momany, Peter Damiano
Date: 03/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: University of Iowa Public Policy Center
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Building a Community of Practice in Rural Medical Education: Growing Our Own Together
Describes the history of rural training track residency programs in the United States since 1986 and the growth of a healthy community of practice in rural medical education.
Author(s): Randall Longenecker, David Schmitz
Citation: Rural and Remote Health, 17(1), 4195
Date: 03/2017
Type: Document
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Veterans Health Administration: Actions Needed to Better Recruit and Retain Clinical and Administrative Staff
Testimony before the House Subcommittee on Health and the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs detailing the Veterans Health Administration's (VHA) challenges in attracting, hiring, and retaining top healthcare talent, including in rural locations. Also discusses the VHA's capacity to perform key human resources functions and makes recommendations for future improvements.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 03/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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Learning by Doing: The MD-PA Interprofessional Education Rural Rotation
Describes the Combined Medical-Physician Assistant Student Rural Rotation (Med-PARR) program at the Oregon Health & Science University, in which pairs of third-year MD students and second-year PA students spend 5 weeks together in a primary-care-focused clinical rotation in a rural area.
Author(s): Ryan Palmer, Curt Stilp
Citation: Rural and Remote Health, 17(1), 4167
Date: 03/2017
Type: Document
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MedPAC Report to the Congress: Medicare Payment Policy, 2017
Provides an annual review of Medicare payment policies, with recommendations to Congress. Includes discussions on Medicare payment policies that directly affect rural providers and beneficiaries. Analyses payment adequacy for home health, skilled nursing, long-term care hospitals, hospice, ambulatory surgical centers, and rehabilitation facilities.
Date: 03/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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Community Health Workers Get Trained to Reduce Oral Health Disparities
Highlights programs serving the Navajo Nation, Texas colonias, and Appalachian Maryland that use community health workers to provide oral health education and improve access dental care.
Author(s): Jenn Lukens
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 03/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Assessment of Factors for Recruiting and Retaining Medical Students to Rural Communities Using the Community Apgar Questionnaire
Describes factors influencing family physician recruitment in rural settings from a survey of 282 third- and fourth-year medical students. Includes data on students intending to practice in rural versus non-rural areas. Utilizes the Community Apgar Questionnaire, which evaluates community factors influencing physician recruitment including geography, economics, facility and community support, scope of practice, and more.
Author(s): Alex J. Reed, David Schmitz, Edward Baker, James Girvan, Theodore McDonald
Citation: Family Medicine 49(2), 132-136
Date: 02/2017
Type: Document
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Dental Therapy Toolkit: A Resource for Potential Employers
Toolkit designed to provide prospective employers of dental therapists a history and understanding of the field and offer information on how to integrate dental therapists into their practices in the state of Minnesota. Includes regulations and scope of practice details, education and training requirements, and examples of successful dental therapy models, among other topics.
Date: 02/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Health Reform Minnesota, Minnesota Department of Health - Office of Rural Health and Primary Care, Minnesota Department of Human Services
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Community Health Workers: Recommendations for Bridging Healthcare Gaps in Rural America
Policy brief reviewing research findings on community health worker (CHW) integration, and how CHWs can help bridge healthcare gaps in rural communities. Also reviews various state policies related to CHWs, identifies a number of care settings where CHWs are working in rural areas, and makes policy recommendations to support the continued integration of CHWs into the rural healthcare delivery system.
Author(s): Kailyn Dorhauer Mock, Tracy Morton, Prisci Quijada, Julie St. John
Date: 02/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Rural Health Association
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