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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Health workforce

December 2020 MedPAC Meeting Transcript
Transcript from the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission's (MedPAC) December 2020 meeting. Covers payment adequacy and updates for hospital inpatient and outpatient services and the mandated report on expanding the post-acute care transfer policy to hospice, ambulatory surgical center services, outpatient dialysis services, physician and other health professional services, hospice services, and a status report and benchmark policy option on the Medicare Advantage program. Includes rural references throughout.
Date: 12/2020
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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Determinants of Rural-Urban Differences in Health Care Provider Visits Among Women of Reproductive Age in the United States
Uses nationally representative data to investigate whether rural and urban women of reproductive age experience differences in healthcare provider visits. Features rural/urban comparisons on individual- and county-level characteristics and medical provider visits by type of healthcare professional.
Author(s): Hyunjung Lee, Ashley H. Hirai, Ching-Ching Claire Lin, John E. Snyder
Citation: PLos One, 15(12), e0240700
Date: 12/2020
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Addressing Health Disparities in the Rural United States: Advocacy as Caregiving among Community Health Workers and Promotores de Salud
Presents a study comparing the roles played by community health workers (CHWs) and promotores de salud in serving rural communities in Indiana and Texas. Discusses CHWs role in addressing rural health disparities and describes that role in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Author(s): Ryan I. Logan, Heide Castañeda
Citation: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(24), 9223
Date: 12/2020
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Indian Health Service Facilities Made Progress Incorporating Patient Protection Policies, but Challenges Remain
Assesses Indian Health Service (IHS) facility implementation of policies to protect children from sexual abuse by providers. Identifies challenges to carrying out the policies. Also discusses barriers that might prevent staff and patients from reporting abuse. Includes recommendations to IHS to further protect patients from abuse. Recommendations address training and guidance, background checks, abuse reporting processes, and monitoring of facility compliance.
Date: 12/2020
Sponsoring organization: Office of Inspector General (HHS)
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Strengthening the Entry-Level Health Care Workforce: Finding a Path
Examines gaps in the existing healthcare workforce, challenges facing entry-level healthcare workers (EHCW), current EHCW training programs and contexts where training programs are used effectively, and strategies and policy opportunities to strengthen the EHCW. Includes rural references throughout and case studies for programs in rural Alaska and Washington. Provides an interactive inventory of existing policies and programs that support EHCW training, recruitment, and retention.
Additional links: Entry-Level Health Care Workforce: Information and Programs Visualization Tool
Author(s): Shira H. Fischer, Ryan K. McBain, Laura J. Faherty, et al.
Date: 12/2020
Sponsoring organizations: HHS Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, RAND Corporation
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Buprenorphine Dispensing in an Epicenter of the U.S. Opioid Epidemic: A Case Study of the Rural Risk Environment in Appalachian Kentucky
Explores buprenorphine dispensing practices among pharmacists in rural, Appalachian Kentucky, highlighting issues related to buprenorphine dispensing hesitancy. Identifies themes from interviews with 14 pharmacists operating in 12 rural, Appalachian Kentucky counties and discusses dispensing risk environment. Reviews factors influencing hesitancy, including national and state-level drug policy, stigma, and continuing impacts of the opioid epidemic.
Author(s): Hannah LF Cooper, David H. Cloud, Patricia R. Freeman, et al.
Citation: International Journal of Drug Policy, 85, 102701
Date: 11/2020
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Social Workers in North Dakota
Highlights the supply and distribution of social workers in North Dakota. Includes a breakdown of rural and urban distribution and retention.
Date: 11/2020
Sponsoring organization: University of North Dakota School of Medicine & Health Sciences
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Iowa Board of Nursing Annual Report: July 1, 2019 - June 30, 2020
Provides an overview of the nursing workforce in Iowa as of June 2020. Includes county-level data on active Registered Nurse (RN) licenses, highest-level educational attainment for RNs, active Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) licenses, and active Advance Registered Nurse Practitioner (ARPN) licenses.
Author(s): Kathleen R. Weinberg
Date: 11/2020
Sponsoring organization: Iowa Board of Nursing
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Utah's Physician Workforce, 2020
Study of Utah's physician workforce, based on a 2019 survey by the Utah Medical Education Council. Discusses supply and demand, demographics, geographic distribution, practice characteristics, projected supply and demand, and specialty profiles including primary care and specialty care. Features statistics with breakdowns by rural and urban areas.
Author(s): Jared Staheli, Clark Ruttinger
Date: 11/2020
Sponsoring organization: Utah Health Workforce Information Center
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The Arizona Behavioral Health Workforce
Brief reporting on behavioral health needs in Arizona, the distribution of workforce by profession, rural disparities in access to behavioral health providers.
Author(s): B Koch, S Coates, D Derksen
Date: 11/2020
Sponsoring organization: Arizona Center for Rural Health
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