Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Healthcare facilities
Indian Health Service: Opportunities Exist to Improve Clinician Screening Adherence and Oversight
Examines the Indian Health Service's (IHS) oversight of the credentialing and privileging process that reviews and verifies the professional qualifications of IHS physicians. Describes administrative tasks performed by IHS clinicians at federally operated facilities and the amount of time spent on these tasks. Offers recommendations to IHS, including the development of a single, authoritative source outlining procedures to meet credentialing and privileging requirements.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 04/2024
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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Examines the Indian Health Service's (IHS) oversight of the credentialing and privileging process that reviews and verifies the professional qualifications of IHS physicians. Describes administrative tasks performed by IHS clinicians at federally operated facilities and the amount of time spent on these tasks. Offers recommendations to IHS, including the development of a single, authoritative source outlining procedures to meet credentialing and privileging requirements.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 04/2024
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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Evaluation of the Maryland Total Cost of Care Model: Progress Report
Provides an overview of the Maryland Total Cost of Care Model and evaluates the first four years of the program, 2019-2022. Explores the effects of the model on Medicare spending; service use, including preventable hospital use; and healthcare quality measures. Estimates the potential impact of switching Maryland to the Medicare prospective payment system (PPS) on Medicare spending and service use, including implications for rural and safety net hospitals.
Additional links: Appendices, Findings at a Glance, Transformation Spotlight
Date: 04/2024
Sponsoring organizations: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Mathematica
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Provides an overview of the Maryland Total Cost of Care Model and evaluates the first four years of the program, 2019-2022. Explores the effects of the model on Medicare spending; service use, including preventable hospital use; and healthcare quality measures. Estimates the potential impact of switching Maryland to the Medicare prospective payment system (PPS) on Medicare spending and service use, including implications for rural and safety net hospitals.
Additional links: Appendices, Findings at a Glance, Transformation Spotlight
Date: 04/2024
Sponsoring organizations: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Mathematica
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2023 National CAH Quality Inventory & Assessment National Report
Presents a high-level summary of key data points from the October-December 2023 National Critical Access Hospital (CAH) Quality Inventory and Assessment. Includes data on CAH system affiliation; median average daily census and emergency department volume; hospital inpatient, behavioral health and specialty care, and outpatient and other service lines; and CAH quality payment model participation.
Author(s): Megan Lahr, Robert Barclay, Madeleine Pick
Date: 04/2024
Sponsoring organization: Flex Monitoring Team
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Presents a high-level summary of key data points from the October-December 2023 National Critical Access Hospital (CAH) Quality Inventory and Assessment. Includes data on CAH system affiliation; median average daily census and emergency department volume; hospital inpatient, behavioral health and specialty care, and outpatient and other service lines; and CAH quality payment model participation.
Author(s): Megan Lahr, Robert Barclay, Madeleine Pick
Date: 04/2024
Sponsoring organization: Flex Monitoring Team
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Assessing the Impact of COVID-19 on Rural Hospitals
Explores the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on rural hospital financial performance. Presents data on profitability and patient care margin trends from 2017 to 2022. Describes characteristics of rural hospitals in three categories of patient care margins: those that always had negative margins, always had positive margins, and those with mixed margins. Discusses the impact of COVID-19 relief funding on total hospital margins.
Author(s): Saleema A. Karim, Nathan W. Carroll, Paula H. Song, Adam Atherly
Date: 04/2024
Sponsoring organizations: American Hospital Association, Department of Health Administration at the Virginia Commonwealth University College of Health Professions
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Explores the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on rural hospital financial performance. Presents data on profitability and patient care margin trends from 2017 to 2022. Describes characteristics of rural hospitals in three categories of patient care margins: those that always had negative margins, always had positive margins, and those with mixed margins. Discusses the impact of COVID-19 relief funding on total hospital margins.
Author(s): Saleema A. Karim, Nathan W. Carroll, Paula H. Song, Adam Atherly
Date: 04/2024
Sponsoring organizations: American Hospital Association, Department of Health Administration at the Virginia Commonwealth University College of Health Professions
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The First 1,000 Days of Life: Creating Brighter Futures for New Moms and Babies
Podcast episode featuring a discussion with leaders from Intermountain Healthcare and St. James Health Care in Butte, Montana, regarding how their initiatives provide wraparound and intensive case management services to at-risk new moms from pregnancy through their baby's first two years. Includes a discussion with a former program participant.
Date: 04/2024
Sponsoring organization: American Hospital Association
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Podcast episode featuring a discussion with leaders from Intermountain Healthcare and St. James Health Care in Butte, Montana, regarding how their initiatives provide wraparound and intensive case management services to at-risk new moms from pregnancy through their baby's first two years. Includes a discussion with a former program participant.
Date: 04/2024
Sponsoring organization: American Hospital Association
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Community Health Centers and Value-Based Payment
Discusses the role of Federally Qualified Health Centers and Rural Health Clinics, alternative payment models, and the challenges with implementing value-based payment.
Author(s): Janet Weiner
Date: 04/2024
Sponsoring organization: University of Pennsylvania Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics
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Discusses the role of Federally Qualified Health Centers and Rural Health Clinics, alternative payment models, and the challenges with implementing value-based payment.
Author(s): Janet Weiner
Date: 04/2024
Sponsoring organization: University of Pennsylvania Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics
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Health Care Coalitions: A Resource to Support Critical Access Hospital Emergency Preparedness Planning
Describes unique challenges Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs) face regarding emergency preparedness planning. Presents findings from interviews with leaders from 8 statewide or regional healthcare coalitions (HCCs) regarding strategies and resources HCCs provide to support the CAH emergency preparedness planning process. Outlines the functions and roles of HCCs by the 4 Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response (ASPR) capability goals.
Author(s): John Gale, Karen Pearson, Rebecca Stearns
Date: 04/2024
Sponsoring organization: Flex Monitoring Team
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Describes unique challenges Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs) face regarding emergency preparedness planning. Presents findings from interviews with leaders from 8 statewide or regional healthcare coalitions (HCCs) regarding strategies and resources HCCs provide to support the CAH emergency preparedness planning process. Outlines the functions and roles of HCCs by the 4 Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response (ASPR) capability goals.
Author(s): John Gale, Karen Pearson, Rebecca Stearns
Date: 04/2024
Sponsoring organization: Flex Monitoring Team
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Dental Therapy Resource Guide
Describes the role of dental therapists in expanding access to dental healthcare in rural communities. Outlines the status of state laws and regulations regarding dental therapy education and practice as of August 2021. Compares the scope of practice of dental therapists to other dental care providers.
Date: 04/2024
Sponsoring organization: National Association of Community Health Centers
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Describes the role of dental therapists in expanding access to dental healthcare in rural communities. Outlines the status of state laws and regulations regarding dental therapy education and practice as of August 2021. Compares the scope of practice of dental therapists to other dental care providers.
Date: 04/2024
Sponsoring organization: National Association of Community Health Centers
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What Happens to Rural Hospitals During a Ransomware Attack? Evidence from Medicare Data
Explores the effects of ransomware attacks on hospital operations. Analyzes data from the Tracking Healthcare Ransomware Events and Traits (THREAT) database, which includes information for every hospital identified as experiencing a ransomware attack between 2016 and 2021, and linked to Medicare fee-for-service (FFS) claims data. Compares the characteristics of rural and urban hospitals that experienced a ransomware attack. Describes the impact of ransomware attacks on rural and urban inpatient admissions, outpatient and emergency room visit volume, and travel distance and time to the next closest hospital not experiencing an attack.
Author(s): Hannah T. Neprash, Claire C. McGlave, Katie Rydberg, Carrie Henning-Smith
Citation: Journal of Rural Health, 40(4), 728-737
Date: 03/2024
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Explores the effects of ransomware attacks on hospital operations. Analyzes data from the Tracking Healthcare Ransomware Events and Traits (THREAT) database, which includes information for every hospital identified as experiencing a ransomware attack between 2016 and 2021, and linked to Medicare fee-for-service (FFS) claims data. Compares the characteristics of rural and urban hospitals that experienced a ransomware attack. Describes the impact of ransomware attacks on rural and urban inpatient admissions, outpatient and emergency room visit volume, and travel distance and time to the next closest hospital not experiencing an attack.
Author(s): Hannah T. Neprash, Claire C. McGlave, Katie Rydberg, Carrie Henning-Smith
Citation: Journal of Rural Health, 40(4), 728-737
Date: 03/2024
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Obstetric Imaging Practice Characteristics Associated with Prenatal Detection of Critical Congenital Heart Disease in a Rural US Region over 20 Years
Analyzes practice characteristics associated with frequency of prenatal critical congenital heart disease (CCHD) detection from 2002-2021 at a tertiary academic hospital and 11 low-volume, rural hospitals providing obstetric services in rural areas of Vermont and New York. Provides data on CCHD detection frequency by practice type, patient volume, and physician or sonographer specialty. Includes additional data on changes in CCHD detection frequency over time.
Author(s): Kelley C. McLean, Marjorie C. Meyer, Sarah R. Peters, et al.
Citation: Prenatal Diagnosis, 44(6-7), 698-705
Date: 03/2024
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Analyzes practice characteristics associated with frequency of prenatal critical congenital heart disease (CCHD) detection from 2002-2021 at a tertiary academic hospital and 11 low-volume, rural hospitals providing obstetric services in rural areas of Vermont and New York. Provides data on CCHD detection frequency by practice type, patient volume, and physician or sonographer specialty. Includes additional data on changes in CCHD detection frequency over time.
Author(s): Kelley C. McLean, Marjorie C. Meyer, Sarah R. Peters, et al.
Citation: Prenatal Diagnosis, 44(6-7), 698-705
Date: 03/2024
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