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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Healthcare needs and services

Building a Rural, Coalition-Based Approach to Youth Substance Use Prevention: The Drug Free Dickson Coalition Model
Presents a rural coalition-based initiative to address youth substance use in Dickson County, Tennessee. Details a coalition, including local government, schools, healthcare providers, faith-based institutions, and law enforcement, among others, that works to engage youth across the county using evidence-based strategies.
Author(s): Karrie R. Thompson
Citation: Journal of Public Health Management and Practice, 32(6S), S185-S188
Date: 11/2026
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Developing Community Partnerships and Authentically Engaging Youth to Prevent Substance Use: Successes from the Pyramid Coalition in Hidalgo County, New Mexico
Explores the Pyramid Coalition, a Drug-Free Communities (DFC) Support Program initiative, in rural Hidalgo County, New Mexico. Discusses the coalition's work in preventing youth substance use and highlights best practices for engaging youth in rural and frontier communities.
Author(s): Christina Johnson, Joni Kerr
Citation: Journal of Public Health Management and Practice, 32(6S), S181-S184
Date: 11/2026
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How Do Services Offered Within Opioid Treatment Programs Vary Based on State Methadone Policies?
Examines the availability of opioid treatment programs (OTPs) in various states as well as access to medication for opioid use disorder (MOUD) options, psychosocial services, and housing supports. Analyzes 1,501 opioid treatment programs (OTPs) and their characteristics, including state restrictiveness, services offered, facility type, rurality, and more.
Author(s): Zoe Lindenfeld, Noa Krawczyk, Erin A. Taylor, Denis Agniel, Jonathan H. Cantor
Citation: Journal of Substance Use & Addiction Treatment, 190, 210062
Date: 11/2026
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The Utility of Psychological Capital Theory in Rural Adolescent Mental Health Research
Explores the psychological capital (PsyCap), or one's sense of hope, self-efficacy, resilience, and optimism, and mental health among rural adolescents. Bases findings on a survey of 59 adolescents in rural Texas. Discusses the utility of PsyCap as a model for evaluating rural adolescent mental health.
Author(s): Angela J. Preston, Lynn Rew, Cara C. Young, John Lowe, Huaxin Song
Citation: Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 31(4), 1374-1388
Date: 10/2026
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School Nurses' Perceptions of Mental Health Responsibilities Within School Nursing Practice: A Q Methodology Study
Examines the perspectives of school nurses on addressing mental health needs of students in rural schools. Analyzes feedback from 70 school nurses working in eastern North Carolina on issues such as nursing responsibilities, mental health, suicide risk, crisis response, and more.
Author(s): Travis E. Lewis, Deby E. Tyndall, Mitzi C. Pestaner
Citation: Journal of School Health, 96(10), e70242
Date: 10/2026
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The Financial Impact of Pregnancy and Childbirth Among Louisiana Medicaid Beneficiaries
Examines the relationship between pregnancy and financial health of women in Louisiana. Analyzes 2017-2020 Medicaid claims data and credit reports of 76,468 patients and provides breakdowns of credit scores, medical debt, and nonmedical debt by demographics, pregnancy status, and rural versus urban location.
Author(s): Brigham Walker, Ethan Tsai, Andrew Anderson, Melissa Evans, Kevin Callison
Citation: Health Services Research, 61(5), e70166
Date: 10/2026
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Personalized Environmental Risk Communication and Cancer Screening Intent among Rural Private Well Users
Presents findings from a private well testing and cancer education initiative in Georgia's Tattnall, Bulloch, and Evans counties. Includes data on well contaminants, understanding of well testing results, environmental risk communication, and cancer screening intent among 100 rural well owners.
Author(s): Victoria Clower, Andrew Hansen, Jeff Jones, Asli Aslan
Citation: Preventive Medicine Reports, 70, 103620
Date: 10/2026
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Veterans Affairs Clinical Resource Hub Improve Access to Mental Health Services for Rural Veterans
Evaluates 627,436 telemental health service encounters over 5 years with rural veterans to determine the impact of 18 Clinical Resource Hubs on access to mental healthcare. Discusses how utilization of telemental health services increased over the 5 years, trends in modality types, and mental health diagnoses, in addition to other demographic characteristics.
Author(s): Erin Jaske, Chelle L. Wheat, Bradford Felker, et al.
Citation: Telemedicine and e-Health, 32(10), 995-1002
Date: 10/2026
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Geographic Accessibility of Burn Centers in the United States
Examines access to burn centers in the contiguous U.S. according to geography and community income. Analyzes location of burn centers by region and rurality and includes county-level maps showing median household income as well as distance and drive time to nearest burn center.
Author(s): Philong Nguyen, Joshua Wang, Yousef Tanas, et al.
Citation: JAMA Network Open, 9(9), e2636854
Date: 09/2026
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2026 National Veteran Suicide Prevention Annual Report
Report highlights the rate of suicide among veterans and the VA's role in suicide prevention. Discusses the risk factors for veteran suicide and the steps the VA is taking for suicide prevention. Breaks down rates of suicide by sex, contact with the VHA, and rurality, among other factors.
Date: 09/2026
Sponsoring organization: U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
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