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Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Health workforce supply and demand

Community Health Centers' Progress and Challenges in Meeting Patients' Essential Primary Care Needs: Findings from the Commonwealth Fund 2024 National Survey of Federally Qualified Health Centers
Summarizes findings from the 2024 Commonwealth Fund National Survey of Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs), which received responses from 737 FQHC leaders in fall 2023 and spring 2024. Explores the extent to which FQHCs achieve primary care accessibility, comprehensiveness, and coordination. Compares findings to data from the 2018 version of this survey to assess how care delivery changed over time. Describes barriers FQHCs face in offering high-quality care. Presents data by rural and urban location throughout.
Author(s): Celli Horstman, Corinne Lewis, Alexandra Bryan, Sara Federman
Date: 08/2024
Sponsoring organization: Commonwealth Fund
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Virginia's Licensed Clinical Social Worker Workforce: 2024
An overview of the licensed clinical social workers (LCSW) workforce in Virginia based on data from the 2024 Licensed Clinical Social Worker Workforce Survey. Features statistics including the number of LCSWs in rural Virginia and how many grew up in rural areas.
Date: 07/2024
Sponsoring organization: Virginia Department of Health Professions
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Virginia's Licensed Clinical Psychologist Workforce: 2024
An overview of the licensed clinical psychologist (LCP) workforce in Virginia based on data from the 2024 Licensed Clinical Psychologist Workforce Survey. Features statistics including the number of LCPs in rural Virginia and how many grew up in rural areas.
Date: 07/2024
Sponsoring organization: Virginia Department of Health Professions
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2022-24 Florida Physician Assistant Workforce Survey Report
Results of a survey of 14,427 physician assistants (PAs) who renewed their Florida licenses in 2022 and 2024. Features statistics including number of Florida PAs whose primary practice locations were rural clinics or rural hospitals.
Date: 07/2024
Sponsoring organization: Florida Health
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Providing Care in Underresourced Areas: Contribution of the Physician Assistant/Associate Workforce
Analyzes the prevalence of physician assistants/associates (PAs) working in Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs) or Medically Underserved Areas (MUAs). Utilizes 2022 data to examine PA work location, with further breakdowns according to PA demographics, education and specialty, and geographic location of urban versus rural/isolated.
Author(s): Mirela Bruza-Augatis, Bettie Coplan, Kasey Puckett, Andrzej Kozikowski
Citation: BMC Health Services Research, 24, 844
Date: 07/2024
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Disability and Independence in Rural America: White Paper
Provides an overview of disability and independence in rural America. Describes disability prevalence in rural areas and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) programs for people with disabilities. Outlines key considerations for rural disability services, including access, Medicaid and Medicare coverage, workforce, and telehealth and technology. Highlights themes that emerged during the September 2023 National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Service (NACRHHS) meeting regarding areas for disability and independence policy improvement. Appendix A summarizes NACRHHS subcommittee site visits of two organizations serving rural Colorado residents.
Date: 07/2024
Sponsoring organization: National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services
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Geographic Variation in Shortfalls of Dementia Specialists in the United States
Reports on distribution of dementia specialists to identify potential dementia care shortage areas for the older adult population. Discusses the impact on rural residents.
Author(s): Jodi L. Liu, Lawrence Baker, Annie Yu-An Chen, Jue (Jessie) Wang
Citation: Health Affairs Scholar, 2(7)
Date: 07/2024
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The Prevalence of Mental Health Conditions Was on the Rise Before the COVID-19 Pandemic and the Pandemic Had a Negative Effect on Mental Health
Data spotlight on mental illness, depression, and suicide among adults during the COVID-19 pandemic. Analyzes disparities and discusses barriers to care related to a variety of sociodemographic factors including geography. See Figures 3, 7, and 8 for data on health professional shortage areas (HPSAs), mental health-related emergency department visits, and suicide deaths by level of rurality.
Date: 07/2024
Sponsoring organization: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
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Understanding and Responding to Registered Nursing Shortages in Acute Care Hospitals in New York
Identifies factors that contribute to persistent registered nurse (RN) shortages, based on interviews with chief nursing officers or executives, nurse recruiters, and human resources staff from more than 50 New York hospitals. Describes promising strategies to improve the recruitment and retention of patient care RNs, with an emphasis on rural and safety-net hospitals.
Author(s): R Martiniano, S Shirey, J Moore
Date: 07/2024
Sponsoring organizations: Center for Health Workforce Studies, Mother Cabrini Health Foundation
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State Policies Bolster Rural Healthcare Workforce
Discusses strategies by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) and state policymakers to improve the rural healthcare workforce through recruitment, training, retention, and scope of practice. Provides examples of policy aimed at addressing shortages in the rural healthcare workforce.
Author(s): Chikamso Chukwu
Date: 07/2024
Sponsoring organization: Association of State and Territorial Health Officials
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