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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Mental health

Characterization of Mental Illness Among US Coal Miners
Describe the prevalence of and risk factors for mental illness among 2,808 active and former coal miners from central Appalachia who received clinical care at Stone Mountain Health Services Black Lung Clinic between 2018-2020. Features statistics with breakdowns by degree of depression, pulmonary risk factors, and length of time spent working as a miner.
Author(s): Drew Harris, Timothy McMurry, Amanda Caughron, et al.
Citation: JAMA Network Open, 4(5)
Date: 05/2021
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Pain in the Nation: Alcohol, Drug, and Suicide Epidemics - Special Feature: COVID-19 and Trauma
Explores the effect the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent trauma it has had on rates of suicide and alcohol- and drug-induced deaths across the nation. Breaks down data by a number of indicators, such as by age, race, and rural versus urban location.
Date: 05/2021
Sponsoring organization: Trust for America's Health
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Law and Policy Pathways to Addressing Rising Youth Suicide Rates
Provides information on how to prevent death by suicide in different youth populations, including rural youth. Includes evidence-based suicide prevention strategies and ways to engage communities in prevention efforts.
Author(s): April Shaw
Date: 04/2021
Sponsoring organization: Network for Public Health Law
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Caring for American Indian and Alaska Native Children and Adolescents
Examines the influence of historical trauma and health inequities on the socioeconomic and health status of AI/AN youth. Discusses the disproportionate mental and cardiovascular health needs, and disease processes of AI/AN youth. Identifies strategies for culturally sensitive care to lessen morbidity, and makes policy recommendations supporting institutional and system changes for improving health outcomes.
Author(s): Bell. S., Deen, J.F., Fuentes, M., Moore, K.
Citation: Pediatrics, 147(4)
Date: 04/2021
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April 2021 MACPAC Meeting Transcript
Transcript from the Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission's (MACPAC) April 2021 meeting. Covers the review of draft chapters and recommendations regarding high-cost specialty drugs, improving integration through dual-eligible special needs plans (D-SNPs), access to mental health services for adults, access to behavioral health services for children and adolescents, electronic health records as a tool for behavioral health services integration, and the non-emergency medical transportation benefit. Also details lessons from states on rebalancing, ensuring quality in Medicaid and CHIP, and what states are learning from the expanded use of telehealth.
Date: 04/2021
Sponsoring organization: Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission
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Case Study: Avera Behavioral Health
Profiles Avera Behavioral Health, which partners with primary care providers, families, and other healthcare providers via a telepsychiatry network to serve rural communities nationwide. Discusses the development of the Avera Behavioral Health network, goals of the program, innovative approaches, and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the network. Highlights key lessons for successful community networks.
Date: 04/2021
Sponsoring organization: American Hospital Association
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Reducing Rural Veteran Suicides: Navigating Geospatial and Community Contexts for Scaling up a National Veterans Affairs Program
Details the development of planning maps to facilitate the recruitment of rural veterans into a community-based suicide prevention program. Aims to identify the percentages of rural veterans enrolled in the Veterans Health Administration, of veterans in the total population, and of suicide mortality for each county mapped.
Author(s): Carlee J. Kreisel, Lauren K. Wilson, Alexandra L. Schneider, et al.
Citation: Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, 51(2), 344-351
Date: 04/2021
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Looking at the Rural Homelessness Experience: Definitions, Data, and Solutions
Explains how homelessness impacts health. Features a Vermont organization's work using the evidence-based Housing First model to help people with mental health and substance use challenges and others who lack social supports and have housing needs.
Author(s): Kay Miller Temple
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 04/2021
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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VA Health Care: Efforts Needed to Ensure Effective Use and Appropriate Staffing of Suicide Prevention Teams
Report evaluates the Veterans Health Administration's (VHA's) utilization of suicide prevention teams to prevent suicides among veterans. Evaluation makes recommendations for elevating benchmarks of the program and improving team staffing.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 04/2021
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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Mississippi Primary Care Needs Assessment
Identifies Mississippi communities with the greatest unmet healthcare needs and offers recommendations for allocating resources, managing shortage designations, and coordinating the recruitment and retention of healthcare professionals. Includes sections on social determinants of health, Health Professional Shortage Areas, Graduate Medical Education, and workforce development. Features statistics on various diseases and health conditions.
Date: 03/2021
Sponsoring organizations: Mississippi State Department of Health, The Mississippi Center for Rural Health and Population Studies
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