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Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Population health

Exploring the Role of Critical Health Literacy in Addressing the Social Determinants of Health
Brief reporting on a workshop held by the Roundtable on Health Literacy that explored Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) and health literacy to serve vulnerable communities. Discusses SDOH models, research methods to engage communities, and critical health literacy. Project examples include work with rural Native American communities.
Author(s): Board on Population Health and Public Health Practice
Date: 06/2021
Sponsoring organization: Health and Medicine Division (HMD), National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
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National RTAP/FTA Webinar: Rural Transportation Planning and the COVID-19 Response
Webinar recording discusses how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected rural and tribal transit, their communities, and the providers responding to the pandemic. Features speakers from the Federal Transit Administration, the National Rural Transit Assistance Program, the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, the Crawford Area Transit Authority, and Nevada County Transit Services.
Date: 06/2021
Sponsoring organization: National Rural Transit Assistance Program
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Understanding VA's Use of and Relationships With Community Care Providers Under the MISSION Act
Highlights a study analyzing the VA Community Care Network (CCN) to better understand the needs of the program regionally and the challenges faced by community providers who work with the CCN. Draws data from a national survey of facility directors and breaks down facility data by percent rural, care specialty, and partnerships.
Author(s): Kristin M. Mattocks, Aimee Kroll-Desrosiers, Rebecca Kinney, et al.
Citation: Medical Care, 59, (6, Suppl3), 252-258
Date: 06/2021
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Faith in Recovery Coalition Offers Hope for Opioid Use Disorder in Fayette County, Ohio
Highlights the Pathways to Recovery program, which works to address opioid use disorder in rural Ohio. Efforts include educating providers and law enforcement, overdose prevention, harm reduction, and recovery support from Peer Support Specialists.
Author(s): Kathryn Rutz
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 06/2021
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Demographic Factors Associated With Non-Guideline-Based Treatment of Kidney Cancer in the United States
Results of a study of 158,455 kidney patients, based on data from the National Cancer Database for the years 2010-2017. Examines whether demographic factors are associated with deviation from guideline-based treatment of kidney cancer. Features statistics with breakdowns by metropolitan, urban, and rural location of patients.
Author(s): Jeffrey M. Howard, Karabi Nandy, Solomon L. Woldu, Vitaly Margulis
Citation: JAMA Network Open, 4(6)
Date: 06/2021
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COVID-19 Vaccines: Audience Insights & Messaging Guidance for Rural Communities
Examines rural residents' perspectives and concerns about vaccines, so that business leaders can respond to employee questions and effectively share vaccine facts. Includes suggested messages and links for additional resources.
Additional links: A Checklist for Rural Employers: Making it Easier for Employees & Workers to get Vaccinated
Date: 06/2021
Sponsoring organization: Health Action Alliance
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VA Community Care: Understanding Veterans' Access, Utilization, and Satisfaction
Supplemental journal features a wide variety articles pertaining to veterans' access to care, utilization, and the VA's Community Care Network (CCN). Discusses the CCN's relationship with the MISSION Act, telehealth, and challenges facing rural veterans, among other issues.
Citation: Medical Care, 59, (6, Suppl 3)
Date: 06/2021
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Providing APPE Pharmacy Students Rural Health Assessment Experience Following Wildfire Event in Western Montana
Discusses an experiential training opportunity in which pharmacy students utilized their clinical rotations to provide screenings for a rural community experiencing wildfire smoke health impacts. Provides information about how the students engaged in rural community interactions and helped to respond to a public health emergency.
Author(s): Cristi A.L. Migliaccio, Sarah Ballou, Mary Buford, Ava Orr, Christopher Migliaccio
Citation: Currents in Pharmacy Teaching and Learning, 13(5), 560-565
Date: 05/2021
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Use of the Spatial Access Ratio to Measure Geospatial Access to Emergency General Surgery Services in California
Evaluates the ability of Spatial Access Ratio (SPAR) to identify disparities in emergency general surgery (EGS) access in California. Compares the locations of 238 EGS-capable hospitals to the location of California residents with focus on the socio-demographic characteristics of population size, poverty rate, health insurance coverage, and rural or urban status. Table 2 shows access to EGS hospitals by rurality, among other data. Discusses the use of SPAR to allocate resources differently.
Author(s): Marta McCrum, Neng Wan, Steven Lizotte, et al.
Citation: The Journal of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery, 90(5), 853-860
Date: 05/2021
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Spatial and Temporal Inequalities in Mortality in the USA, 1968-2016
Examines excess mortality at the county level using Poisson regression models adjusted for poverty, education, population change, deindustrialization, and other demographic factors, including rural-urban comparisons. Offers spatial maps and population-weighted cartograms.
Author(s): Welcome Wami, David Walsh, Benjamin D. Hennig, et al.
Citation: Health Place, 70, 102586
Date: 05/2021
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