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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Health workforce supply and demand

Health is Primary: Charting a Path to Equity and Sustainability
Examines factors driving the downward trends in primary care, including fewer clinicians practicing primary care, fewer available appointments, lower spending on primary care, and fewer adults reporting that they have a usual source of primary care. Features a literature review, supply and demand analysis, and recommendations for potential solutions. Mentions rural throughout.
Additional links: Executive Summary, Slide Presentation
Author(s): Alison Huffstetler, Ann Greiner, Anam Siddiqi, et al.
Date: 11/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Primary Care Collaborative, Robert Graham Center
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New Mexico Health Care Workforce Committee: 2023 Annual Report
Provides detailed data at the county level, comparing New Mexico's healthcare workforce to national benchmarks. Discusses rural and frontier area shortages, health workforce migration trends, potential solutions for solving the state's workforce issues (including in rural areas), and updates on previous recommendations. Includes a special focus on the behavioral health workforce, and appendices include gap analyses of New Mexico healthcare professions by county.
Date: 10/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center
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2023 Health Workforce Research Symposium: Addressing Health Workforce Shortages Now & In the Future
A recording of the 2023 Health Workforce Research Symposium showcasing the work of 9 federally-funded health workforce research centers across the U.S. Focuses on health career education pathways and reducing health workforce turnover, with discussions specific to rural areas. Transcript available below description.
Date: 10/2023
Type: Video/Multimedia
Sponsoring organization: Health Workforce Technical Assistance Center
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2023 Workforce Survey Report: The Status of Kentucky's Hospital Workforce
Report on Kentucky's non-physician hospital workforce, discussing vacancy rates, the aging workforce, and more. Includes comparisons of rural and urban areas as well as Area Development Districts (ADDs).
Author(s): Melanie Landrum, Maik Schutze
Date: 10/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Kentucky Hospital Association
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Bringing the Doctor to the Patients: Cardiology Outreach to Rural Areas
Analyzed 30 year cardiologist rural outreach travel data from Iowa to determine factors impacting outreach decision-making and the impact on rural access to cardiology care. Discusses cardiologist distribution, predicted impacts of reduction in workforce, and policy measures to increase access to care, particularly for the most at risk rural outreach sites.
Author(s): J. Jason Bell, Sanghak Lee, Thomas Gruca
Citation: Journal of Marketing, 88(1)
Date: 10/2023
Type: Document
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Health Information Workforce: Survey Results on Workforce Challenges and the Role of Emerging Technologies
Presents results of an August 2023 survey of health information professionals on workforce challenges and the impact of emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence and machine learning, on the health information workforce. Describes challenges for recruiting and retaining health information professionals, factors that influence turnover, and the impacts of understaffing on healthcare quality and reimbursement. Discusses the future outlook for the health information profession and offers policy recommendations to enhance workforce development. Includes rural references throughout.
Date: 10/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: American Health Information Management Association, NORC at the University of Chicago
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Rural Health: Addressing Barriers to Care
An infographic that presents data on rural versus urban health disparities and barriers to healthcare in rural America. Includes interactive data on percentage of rural residents by state, rural life expectancy and chronic health conditions, hospital closures and lack of access to healthcare, rural workforce shortages, and more. Provides strategies to improve rural access to healthcare.
Author(s): Carrie Cochran-McClain
Date: 10/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: National Institute for Health Care Management, National Rural Health Association
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Challenges to Care of Patients with Diabetes in Rural, Underserved Areas
Discussion of providing care to diabetes patients in rural areas. Includes information on demographics, barriers to care, and Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs).
Author(s): Richard J. Santen
Date: 10/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: University of Virginia School of Medicine
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Environmental Scan on Encouraging Rural Participation in Population-Based TCOC Models
Presents results of an environmental scan regarding population-based total cost of care (PB-TCOC) payment models and encouraging rural participation in these models. Describes challenges affecting rural patients and providers; opportunities for alternative payment models (APMs) and PB-TCOC models to address challenges in rural areas; trends in rural providers' participation in APMs; driving care delivery transformation in rural providers, including models that include or target rural participants in their model designs; leveraging financial incentives to improve rural health care; adoption and use of health information technology, including telehealth and data analytics among rural providers; and the measurement of rural providers' performance in APMs.
Date: 09/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: HHS Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, NORC at the University of Chicago
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Mental Health Outcomes Among Patients Living in US Counties Lacking Broadband Access and Psychiatrists
Presents a study on mental health access for people who live in counties without psychiatrists and broadband coverage. Discusses the expansion of telehealth services for mental healthcare and consultation. Aims to evaluate mental health access in mostly rural counties with a workforce shortage and a lack of broadband access.
Author(s): Tarun Ramesh, Ryan K. McBain, Jonathan H. Cantor, et al.
Citation: JAMA Network Open, 6(9), e2333781
Date: 09/2023
Type: Document
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