Skip to main content
Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Health occupations

Place and Population Matter in General Surgeon Location and Practice Structure
Examines ways in which population changes over time in different geographical regions of the United States have affected the availability of general surgeons and quality of care. Explores the implications of hospital mergers on the viability of rural hospitals.
Author(s): Thomas C. Ricketts
Citation: JAMA Network Open, 4(4)
Date: 04/2021
view details
Graduate Medical Education: Programs and Residents Increased During Transition to Single Accreditor; Distribution Largely Unchanged
Examines the number of graduate medical education (GME) programs and the number of residents in GME programs between the 2014-2015 and 2019-2020 academic years. Describes changes in the number, specialty or subspecialty, and geographic distribution of GME programs and their residents.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 04/2021
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
view details
Addressing Opioid-Related Outcomes among Individuals with Co-Occurring Behavioral Health Conditions: An Environmental Scan of Quality Measures
Presents the results of an environmental scan of healthcare quality measures relevant to addressing polysubstance use among individuals with co-occurring behavioral health conditions. Includes information on access to buprenorphine providers in rural communities.
Date: 04/2021
Sponsoring organization: National Quality Forum
view details
Indiana's Behavioral Health Workforce Report Series: Behavioral Health & Human Services Professionals
Provides 2020 data on Indiana's behavioral health workforce, including addiction counselors, social workers, marriage and family therapists, mental health counselors, and overall license renewals. Includes workforce demographic information, practice characteristics, populations served, services provided, and county-level geographic distribution of workforce.
Author(s): Sierra Vaughn, Hannah Maxey
Date: 03/2021
Sponsoring organization: Bowen Center for Health Workforce Research and Policy
view details
2021 Idaho Primary Care Needs Assessment
Identifies Idaho communities with the greatest unmet healthcare needs, disparities, and healthcare workforce shortages, and discusses key barriers to accessing preventive and primary care services. Includes sections on Health Professional Shortage Areas, Medically Underserved Areas and Populations, the Idaho State Loan Repayment Program, the Rural Physician Incentive Program, primary care educational opportunities, and advanced medical training programs in Idaho. Features maps showing urban, rural, and frontier areas, locations of Rural Health Clinics, and locations of Critical Access Hospitals.
Author(s): Alex Prado
Date: 03/2021
Sponsoring organization: Idaho Bureau of Rural Health and Primary Care
view details
Mississippi Primary Care Needs Assessment
Identifies Mississippi communities with the greatest unmet healthcare needs and offers recommendations for allocating resources, managing shortage designations, and coordinating the recruitment and retention of healthcare professionals. Includes sections on social determinants of health, Health Professional Shortage Areas, Graduate Medical Education, and workforce development. Features statistics on various diseases and health conditions.
Date: 03/2021
Sponsoring organizations: Mississippi State Department of Health, The Mississippi Center for Rural Health and Population Studies
view details
Tackling America's Mental Health and Addiction Crisis Through Primary Care Integration
Explores how primary and behavioral healthcare integration can overcome the unmet needs for mental health and substance use services. Discusses barriers to integrated care delivery. Offers policy recommendations to improve the integration of primary and behavioral healthcare services through enhanced payments, training, and technical assistance, and improving access to behavioral health providers for consultation and referral.
Additional links: Infographic
Date: 03/2021
Sponsoring organization: Bipartisan Policy Center
view details
Addressing the Maternal Health Crisis
Documentation of a March 23, 2021, House Committee on Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies hearing on maternal health disparities. Discusses causes and possible policy options to reduce these disparities.
Date: 03/2021
Sponsoring organization: House Committee on Appropriations, Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies
view details
MedPAC Report to the Congress: Medicare Payment Policy, 2021
Annual review of Medicare payment policies, with recommendations to Congress. Includes discussion on Medicare payment policies directly affecting rural providers and beneficiaries. Addresses payment adequacy for healthcare facilities and services, improving Medicare payment for post-acute care, Medicare Advantage, Medicare Part D, and the impact of healthcare provider consolidation. Contains information on the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on Medicare beneficiary healthcare access, mortality, and service use. Presents an option for Medicare's coverage of telehealth beyond the public health emergency.
Date: 03/2021
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
view details
"All Hands On Deck": The COVID-19 Pandemic Through Nurses' Eyes
Podcast recording featuring Mary Wakefield describes the role of nurses and the challenges they have faced throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Discusses shortages of personal protective equipment, workforce challenges, vaccine administration, and solutions to support nurses in the future. Highlights the experiences of nurses at rural hospitals and clinics.
Date: 03/2021
Sponsoring organization: Commonwealth Fund
view details