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Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Healthcare quality

There's No Place Like Home: Home Health Care in Rural America
Recording of testimony by providers of rural home health care and representatives of home health and hospice organizations, in a hearing held by the United States Senate Special Committee on Aging on February 12, 2020. Addresses challenges including workforce shortages and limitations in Medicare coverage for needed services.
Additional links: Testimony of Francis Adams, Testimony of Leigh Ann Howard, Testimony of Warren Hebert, Testimony of William A. Dombi
Date: 02/2020
Sponsoring organization: U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging
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Defense Health Care: Plans Needed to Ensure Implementation of Required Elements for TRICARE's Managed Care Support Contracts
Report highlights the Government Accountability Office recommendations for the implementation of changes to the Department of Defense's TRICARE managed support contracts that were required by Congress. Evaluates the specific improvements relating to healthcare delivery and touches on their importance in rural areas.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 02/2020
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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Understanding and Addressing the Drivers of Infant Mortality in Maine
Overview of infant mortality data for Maine between 2000 and 2017. Includes county-level data as well as rural and urban comparisons. Discusses causes of mortality, risk factors, challenges for rural residents in the Maine healthcare system, social determinants of health, and more. Makes recommendations for decreasing infant mortality with specific recommendations for rural.
Author(s): Katherine Flaherty
Date: 01/2020
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EMS in Dixie County, Florida: Driving Data for Improved Health
Video details how Dixie County, Florida used supplemental Flex funding to improve reporting quality data collection of its rural emergency medical services (EMS). Explores the way the county used the supplement funding to improve the rate of data collection and data quality of the county's EMS.
Date: 01/2020
Sponsoring organization: National Rural Health Resource Center
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Healthcare Professionals' Mental Health Needs: Where Can They Go?
Provides an overview of the mental health needs of healthcare providers and the barriers to accessing care. Features the work of physician health programs, professional societies, state licensure boards, and other groups to help ensure providers' mental health needs are addressed. Discusses the impact of provider wellness on patient safety and healthcare quality.
Author(s): Kay Miller Temple
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 01/2020
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Burnout: Measurement Tool(s), Cause(s) and Impact(s)
Reports on what is known about burnout among rural healthcare providers, highlighting several research studies. Discusses the impact of burnout on turnover, productivity, healthcare quality, and safety.
Author(s): Kay Miller Temple
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 01/2020
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Patients' Experiences in CAHs: HCAHPS Results, 2018
Provides results from the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) survey for calendar year 2018. Summarizes reporting rates and performance among all U.S. Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs). Includes detailed tables that allow state-by-state comparison of response rates and overall CAH performance.
Author(s): Mariah Quick, Megan Lahr, Tongtan Chantarat, Ira Moscovice
Date: 01/2020
Sponsoring organization: Flex Monitoring Team
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Report to Congress: Demonstration Project on Community Health Integration Models in Certain Rural Counties - Final Report
Presents findings from the Frontier Community Health Integration Project Demonstration (FCHIP) over the 3-year project period. Shares results for the 10 participating Critical Access Hospitals in three states: North Dakota, Montana, and Nevada. The demonstration focused on interventions addressing ambulance services, skilled nursing facility/nursing facility beds, and telehealth. Offers recommendations for legislative and administrative action.
Date: 2020
Sponsoring organization: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
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Helping Patients Living in Rural Areas Transition from Hospital to Home - The ROADMAP Study
Evaluates a hospital discharge planning program's effectiveness in providing support to rural patients returning home after staying in a hospital. Includes patients' demographic information and compares the number of emergency department visits and rehospitalizations of the control group with those of the intervention group.
Author(s): Tom Seekins, Jennifer Wong, Lynda Yearous, et al.
Date: 2020
Sponsoring organization: Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute
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Stem the Tide: Opioid Stewardship Measurement Implementation Guide
Identifies best practices for hospitals and health systems to use data to improve opioid stewardship. Addresses six elements that can support facilities through implementing a data-driven opioid stewardship program. Provides a list of quality improvement measures for hospitals and health systems to track progress. Highlights a consortium of providers serving rural communities across Minnesota, North Dakota, and Wisconsin focused on access to treatment and interventions that address social determinants of health.
Date: 2020
Sponsoring organization: American Hospital Association
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