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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Illicit drug use

A Guide to Establishing Syringe Services Programs in Rural, At-Risk Areas
Describes the basics of syringe services programs, identifies the need for them in at-risk rural communities, and provides guidance on considerations when establishing programs. Includes examples of syringe services programs in Kentucky, West Virginia, Indiana, and North Carolina. Also covers information about syringe services-related regulations and laws in select locations.
Author(s): Regina La Belle
Date: 07/2017
Sponsoring organization: Comer Family Foundation
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Patient Residence Characteristics of Opioid-Related Inpatient Stays and Emergency Department Visits Nationally and by State, 2014
Provides data on opioid-related hospital inpatient stays and emergency department (ED) visits from 2005 to 2014. Includes data by location of patient residence for metropolitan and rural areas. Identifies states where the highest rates of opioid-related inpatient stays and ED visits are in rural areas. Also provides data by community-level income.
Author(s): Audrey J. Weiss, Molly K. Bailey, Lauren O'Malley, et al.
Date: 07/2017
Sponsoring organization: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
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Changes in the Supply of Physicians with a DEA DATA Waiver to Prescribe Buprenorphine for Opioid Use Disorder
Data brief describing changes in access to waivered physicians from 2012 to 2016. Features a county-level map and statistics with breakdowns by urban areas and three levels of rural areas.
Author(s): C. Holly A. Andrilla, Cynthia Coulthard, Eric H. Larson
Date: 05/2017
Sponsoring organization: WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
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Heroin, Methamphetamine Use and Prescription Drug Abuse in Kentucky
Results of the 2016 survey from the Kentucky Health Issues Poll concerning the impact of drug abuse on respondents' family and friends. Includes breakdowns by rural, urban, and suburban counties.
Date: 05/2017
Sponsoring organizations: Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky, Interact for Health
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Promising Practice: Virginia SORH Taking Aim at Opioid Overdose
Illustrates how the Virginia State Office of Rural Health (VA SORH) and its partners are focusing their attention on the opioid epidemic in rural areas of the state by expanding treatment, and training lay rescuers to recognize and respond to an opioid overdose and administer naloxone when necessary.
Author(s): Beth Blevins
Date: 04/2017
Sponsoring organization: National Organization of State Offices of Rural Health
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Substance Use in Rural Central Appalachia: Current Status and Treatment Considerations
Examines the factors in rural Central Appalachia that influence substance misuse and the treatments, strategies, and interventions to curb drug misuse and improve treatment outcomes. Discusses how the combination of poverty, work-related distress, lack of healthcare coverage, and the shortage of qualified providers of substance use treatments affect the need for a multifaceted policy approach in the region.
Author(s): Lara Moody, Emily Satterwhite, Warren K. Bickel
Citation: Rural Mental Health, 41(2), 123-135
Date: 04/2017
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The Opioid Epidemic: Evidence Based Strategies Legislative Report
Discusses the causes and consequences of the opioid epidemic in Louisiana, as well as recommendations to help address it. Outlines differences between rural and urban areas of the state. Provides maps showing access to treatment programs and buprenorphine providers.
Date: 04/2017
Sponsoring organizations: Louisiana Commission on Preventing Opioid Abuse, Louisiana Department of Health
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Report on Lessons Learned from Rural Opioid Overdose Reversal Grant Recipients
Presents lessons learned from the recipients of the Rural Opioid Overdose Reversal (ROOR) Program grants. The ROOR Program was piloted by the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP) in 2015 and seeks to combat the opioid crisis at the local level. Report also shares resources designed to assist other rural organizations and documents the impact of the pilot year program. Provides background information on each of the 18 original grant recipients and their programs.
Date: 04/2017
Sponsoring organization: National Organization of State Offices of Rural Health
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Harm Reduction – West Virginia Local Health Departments Lead Efforts to Mitigate Human and Financial Costs of Opioid Epidemic
Describes West Virginia public health departments' efforts to promote harm reduction programs, as a response to the opioid crisis and resulting overdose deaths. Gives examples of successful programs from across the state.
Date: 04/2017
Sponsoring organization: West Virginia Association of Local Health Departments
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The Effects of Perceived Racial/Ethnic Discrimination on Substance Use Among Youths Living in the Cherokee Nation
Study examining the association of racial discrimination and substance misuse from a sample of American Indian, American Indian and White, and White adolescents living in small rural communities of northeast Oklahoma within the Cherokee Nation Tribal Jurisdictional Service Area (CNTJSA).
Author(s): Brady A. Garrett, Bethany J. Livingston, Melvin D. Livingston, Kelli A. Komroc
Citation: Journal of Child & Adolescent Substance Abuse, 26(3), 242–249
Date: 03/2017
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