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Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Health workforce education and training

RN-to-BSN Programs: Challenges for Rural Nurse Education
Results of a survey of 237 schools with active RN-to-BSN programs, to ascertain the current status of rural-focused nursing education. Features statistics on proportion of RN-to-BSN students drawn from rural areas, student recruitment methods, barriers to recruiting students, availability of online courses, and challenges in online courses.
Author(s): Selina H. McKinney, Janice C. Probst, Eboni Haynes
Date: 10/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural and Minority Health Research Center (formerly the South Carolina Rural Health Research Center)
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Rural Registered Nurses: Educational Preparation, Workplace, and Salary
Examines reported education levels and work sites of rural and urban registered nurses (RNs). Includes United States map showing proportion of RNs with Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN) from 2011-2015, and statistics on ADN nurses by work setting and salary differential, with breakdowns by rural and urban location.
Author(s): Janice C. Probst, Selina Hunt McKinney, Cassie Odahowski
Date: 10/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural and Minority Health Research Center (formerly the South Carolina Rural Health Research Center)
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Enhancing Services for Deaf, Hard of Hearing, and Deafblind Patients in Rural America
Discusses the barriers to care that rural patients who are deaf, hard of hearing, or deafblind face, including lack of accommodations and inadequate clinician training. Features a Michigan clinic with American Sign Language-fluent staff, a New Jersey state division providing deaf sensitivity training, and a Colorado program that brings interpreters to rural communities.
Author(s): Allee Mead
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 10/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Mayo Clinic Joins the National Effort to Train Tomorrow's Rural Surgeons
Describes challenges facing rural surgery, including workforce shortages, outlines the Mayo Clinic's development of a rural general surgery track, and identifies lessons learned in the first three years of the Mayo Clinic's program. Compares competencies required for rural surgeons and those in urban areas.
Author(s): Randy C. Lehman, Brandon G. Douglass, Stephanie F. Heller, Michael C. Roskos
Citation: Bulletin of the American College of Surgeons, 104(10)
Date: 10/2019
Type: Document
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Minnesota's Licensed Counseling (LPC and LPCC) Workforce, 2019
Provides an overview of Minnesota's licensed professional counselor (LPC) and licensed professional clinical counselor (LPCC) workforce using data from the Minnesota Board of Behavioral Health and Therapy and the 2018 LMFT PC/LPCC Workforce Survey. Presents information on demographics, education, employment, and geographic distribution.
Date: 09/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Minnesota Department of Health - Office of Rural Health and Primary Care
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Public Health and Health Professional Education at a Tribal College: A Collaborative Immersion Program in Rural North Dakota
Describes a partnership between a tribal college in rural Spirit Lake, North Dakota and New York medical education institutions to offer summer courses on healthcare professions and public health from 2009-2015. Discusses the lack of Native American representation in healthcare. Presents data on participant experiences from a small focus group of former students, instructors, and visiting professionals, exploring the successes and challenges of developing the program.
Author(s): Charlotte Austin, Elizabeth Berg, Loretta Heuer, et al.
Citation: Rural and Remote Health, 19(3), 5020
Date: 09/2019
Type: Document
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Use of Apprenticeship to Meet Demand for Medical Assistants in the U.S.
Reports findings from a study of registered medical assistant (MA) apprenticeship programs in 12 states. Discusses the workforce needs these programs may help address, including workforce needs in rural communities. Describes the programs and discusses challenges with starting and maintaining MA apprenticeship programs.
Additional links: Policy Brief
Author(s): Andrew D. Jopson, Susan M. Skillman, Bianca K. Frogner
Date: 09/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: UW Center for Health Workforce Studies
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Minnesota's Dental Therapist Workforce, 2019
Provides an overview of the dental therapist workforce in Minnesota, including the history of the profession in the state, educational programs, scope of practice, and licensing requirements. Reports results of a March 2019 survey of the state's dental therapist workforce, with data on demographics, education, employment, work settings, and geographic distribution. Includes data on work location by level of rurality.
Date: 09/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Minnesota Department of Health - Office of Rural Health and Primary Care
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State Strategies to Address Opioid Use Disorder Among Pregnant and Postpartum Women and Infants Prenatally Exposed to Substances, Including Infants with Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome
Identifies state strategies to improve outcomes for pregnant and postpartum women with opioid use disorder and infants prenatally exposed to substances, including opioids. Discusses strategies focused on access to and coordination of quality services, including approaches such as telemedicine that are useful in rural areas. Also discusses strategies related to provider awareness and training and other topics.
Author(s): Charlan D. Kroelinger, Marion E. Rice, Shanna Cox, et al.
Citation: MMWR (Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report), 68(36), 777-783
Date: 09/2019
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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Family Medicine Rural Training Track Residencies: Risks and Resilience
Results of a study to understand threats to rural training track (RTT) program sustainability and resilience factors that help RTTs to thrive.
Author(s): Davis G. Patterson, David Schmitz, Randall L. Longenecker
Citation: Family Medicine, 51(8), 649-656
Date: 09/2019
Type: Document
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