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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Healthcare facilities

The Use of Community Health Workers in Community Health Centers
Examines changes in the community health workers (CHWs) workforce among community health centers (CHCs) from 2016-2018 and factors associated with the use of CHWs. Features statistics on characteristics of CHCs in the study and factors associated with use of CHWs in CHCs, with breakdowns by rural location.
Author(s): Jeongyoung Park, Marsha Regenstein, Nicholas Chong, Chinelo L. Onyilofor
Citation: Medical Care, 59(10), S457-S462
Date: 10/2021
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Mapping the Location of Health Centers in Relation to "Maternity Care Deserts": Associations With Utilization of Women's Health Providers and Services
Explores the association between community health centers' (CHC) distance to a maternity care desert (MCD) and use of maternity-related healthcare services. Discusses the effects of rural hospital closures and provider shortages on patients' access to maternity care. Includes a county-level MCD map and county-level and CHC-level statistics related to MCDs.
Author(s): Anne R. Markus, Drishti Pillai
Citation: Medical Care, 59(10), S434-S440
Date: 10/2021
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The Effect of National Health Service Corps Clinician Staffing on Medical and Behavioral Health Care Costs in Community Health Centers
Examines the contribution of National Health Service Corps (NHSC) and non-NHSC clinicians to medical and behavioral health costs per visit, using 2013-2017 data from 1,022 Federally Qualified Health Centers merged with the NHSC participant data. Features statistics on average costs per visit for medical or behavioral healthcare, with breakdowns including rural facility location.
Author(s): Xinxin Han, Patricia Pittman, Leighton Ku
Citation: Medical Care, 59(10), S428-S433
Date: 10/2021
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Following Labor and Delivery Unit Closures in Rural New Hampshire, Driving Time to the Nearest Unit Doubled
Examines the impact of the closure of 9 labor and delivery units in rural New Hampshire on the driving time to open units between 2000 and 2018. Explores the association between proximity to an open labor and delivery unit and women's health and socioeconomic characteristics.
Author(s): Stacey McMorrow, Sarah Benatar, Timothy J. Fisher
Date: 10/2021
Sponsoring organization: Urban Institute
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Association Between Hospital Performance Metrics and Market Share
Research letter describing the association between publicly reported performance scores for 4,930 hospitals and hospital market share. Features descriptive statistics with breakdowns including acute care hospital or Critical Access Hospital, and percentage of hospital referral region population in rural areas.
Author(s): August Oddleifson, Xiao Xu, Patrick Liu, et al.
Citation: JAMA Network Open, 4(10)
Date: 10/2021
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Measure Applications Partnership 2021-2022 Considerations for Measure Set Removal in Federal Programs: Final Report
Describes the Measure Set Review (MSR) process and the consideration of quality measures for potential removal from Medicare quality programs. Summarizes the National Quality Foundation (NQF) Coordinating Committee discussion and public input on selected hospital quality measures, including the impact of these measures on rural providers. Offers future considerations for the MSR process.
Date: 10/2021
Sponsoring organization: National Quality Forum
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The Association Between System Affiliation and Financial Performance in Critical Access Hospitals
Examines the association between Critical Access Hospital (CAH) health system affiliation and financial performance as measured by the Critical Access Hospital Measurement and Performance Assessment System (CAHMPAS). Discusses trends in health system affiliation as an alternative to closures as well as potential downsides of affiliation.
Author(s): Laura Bozovich, Kathleen Knocke, George Pink, Ann Howard, Kristin L. Reiter
Date: 10/2021
Sponsoring organization: Flex Monitoring Team
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Partnerships, Mergers, and Acquisitions Can Provide Benefits to Certain Hospitals and Communities
Discusses challenges hospitals may face to increasing the scale of operations. Describes how partnerships, mergers, and acquisitions can help prevent hospital closure and preserve access, enhance patient care, and reduce costs. Includes examples of how four acquired hospitals in rural communities benefited from capital investments and improvements.
Date: 10/2021
Sponsoring organization: American Hospital Association
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Transforming State Behavioral Health Systems: Findings from States on the Impact of CCBHC Implementation
Reports information from surveys and interviews with state Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic (CCBHC) program directors from the 8 original demonstration states, including Minnesota, Missouri, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Oklahoma, Oregon, and Pennsylvania. Shares how the CCBHC program helped states address mental health and substance use issues in their communities by lowering costs, improving outcomes, building healthcare system capacity for mental health and substance use, and increasing the infrastructure to meet the rising need of care. Includes specific examples of how the CCBHC program improved access to urgent recovery centers, crisis centers, and telehealth services in rural communities.
Author(s): Rachael Matulis, Dorn Schuffman, Rebecca Farley David, Samantha Holcombe
Date: 10/2021
Sponsoring organization: National Council for Mental Wellbeing
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Birth Volume and Geographic Distribution of US Hospitals with Obstetric Services from 2010 to 2018
Examines the characteristics of hospitals with obstetric services by volume of births between 2010-2018. Describes the geographic distribution, proximity to other obstetric hospitals, and metropolitan status. Presents data on birth volume by hospital characteristics, including Critical Access Hospital and Rural Referral Center designation.
Author(s): Sara C. Handley, Molly Passarella, Heidi M. Herrick
Citation: JAMA Network Open, 4(10)
Date: 10/2021
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