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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Populations

Future Planning for the Public Health Emergency Preparedness Enterprise: Lessons Learned from the COVID-19 Pandemic: Proceedings of a Workshop
Summarizes discussions held during a May 2022 workshop to explore the nation's public health emergency (PHE) preparedness enterprise. Includes key components, success stories, and failure points, to identify opportunities for effective catastrophic disaster, pandemic, and other large scale PHEs planning at the federal, state, local, tribal, and territorial levels. Mentions disparities between urban and rural or tribal areas throughout.
Additional links: Read Online
Author(s): Forum on Medical and Public Health Preparedness for Disasters and Emergencies
Date: 2023
Sponsoring organization: Health and Medicine Division (HMD), National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
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Community Sociodemographics and Rural Hospital Survival
Explores differences in specific community-level sociodemographic factors associated with the survival or closure of rural hospitals at risk of financial distress between 2010 and 2019. Examines the relationship between the risk of hospital closure and median family income, unemployment rate, uninsured rate, education, and more.
Author(s): Claudia A. Rhoades, Brian E. Whitacre, Alison F. Davis
Citation: Journal of Rural Health, 2023(39), 643-655
Date: 2023
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Assessing Intake of Food and Dietary Supplements in Older Adults: Proceedings of a Workshop Series
Summarizes workshop proceedings on assessing food intake and dietary supplements in adults aged 75 years or older. Discusses screening, nutrition practices, challenges, and policies related to elderly adults. Includes considerations of nutritional issues specific to aging in rural areas.
Additional links: Read Online
Author(s): Food and Nutrition Board
Date: 2023
Sponsoring organization: Health and Medicine Division (HMD), National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
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Urban-Rural Disparities in Childhood Obesogenic Environments in the United States: Application of Differing Rural Definitions
Analyzes rural versus urban differences in food and physical activity (PA) environments that contribute to childhood obesogenic environment index (COEI) scores. Utilizes multiple data sources to examine 6 food environment variables and 4 PA variables by rural-urban continuum codes, among other rural definitions. Discusses differences in COEI scores and implications for public health practices.
Author(s): Marilyn E. Wende, M. Renée Umstattd Meyer, Christiaan Abildso, Kara Davis, Andrew T. Kaczynski
Citation: Journal of Rural Health, 39(1), 121-135
Date: 2023
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Understanding Opioid Use Within a Southwestern American Indian Reservation Community: A Qualitative Study
Examines motivations, consequences, and general impact of opioid use among youth and young adults based on interviews with 18 individuals living in a Southwestern reservation community. Discusses prevention efforts such as family-based services and community program interventions.
Author(s): Emma Waugh, Jerreed Ivanich, Victoria O'Keefe, et al.
Citation: Journal of Rural Health, 39(1), 179-185
Date: 2023
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Disparities in Access to Radiation Therapy by Race and Ethnicity in the United States With Focus on American Indian/Alaska Native People
Explores access to radiation therapy American Indian and Alaska Native people across the U.S. Explores travel distances to receive radiation therapy for AI/AN majority and non-AI/AN majority groups. Breaks down data by Indian Health Service region.
Author(s): Solmaz Amiri, Matthew D. Greer, Clemma J. Muller, et al.
Citation: Value in Health, 25(12), 1929-1938
Date: 12/2022
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Regional Surveillance of Medically-Attended Farm-Related Injuries in Children and Adolescents
Analyzed a Wisconsin health clinic's medical records for children with farm-related injuries between 2017 and 2021 to determine the impact of farm residency on rate of injury. Includes analysis of area of bodily injury, time of year, and cause of injury.
Author(s): Jeffrey J. VanWormer, Richard L. Berg, Richard R. Burke, Kathrine L. Barnes, Bryan P. Weichelt
Citation: Frontiers in Public Health, 11, 1031618
Date: 12/2022
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Personal Care Assistance in Rural America
Discusses Personal Care Aide (PCA) scarcity in rural areas using 2013-2017 American Community Survey data. Presents maps and graphs of self-care disability prevalence and PCA availability with breakdowns by region. Also provides graphs comparing rural and urban PCA demographics, including poverty rate, race, educational attainment, sex, age, language spoken at home, and U.S. or foreign place of birth.
Author(s): Lillie Greiman, Rayna A. Sage, Timothy Bates, et al.
Date: 12/2022
Sponsoring organizations: Research and Training Center on Disability in Rural Communities, University of California San Francisco Health Workforce Research Center (UCSF HWRC)
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Occupational Safety and Health with Technological Developments in Livestock Farms: A Literature Review
Literature review of technology in agricultural work intended to reduce occupational safety risks on livestock farms. Includes articles published between 2015 and 2020 in English about technology being used in the United States. 80 articles were examined and gaps in the literature are discussed. Describes types of technology used, type of occupational exposure, and general occupational health and well-being.
Author(s): Marie A. Hayden, Menekse S. Barim, Darlene L. Weaver, et al.
Citation: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(24), 16440
Date: 12/2022
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A Snapshot of Racial Inequities in Human Services Programs in Rural Contexts
Examines the need for human services across rural counties and broken down by racial/ethnic groups. Provides data on human services funding per person, unemployment rate, poverty rate, access to broadband, and access to vehicles by rural Black, Hispanic, Native, and White citizens. Includes a 2018 county-level U.S. map that depicts rural counties with high needs for human services.
Author(s): Emma Ward, James Murdoch, Neel Chakraborti
Date: 12/2022
Sponsoring organizations: 2M Research, Administration for Children and Families
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