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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Populations

Exploring Strategies for Small Local & Tribal Health Departments to Succeed in Accreditation
A recorded webinar that discusses challenges small and tribal health departments face when preparing for the accreditation process. Provides guidance and strategies to help accelerate and achieve accreditation. Transcript available below description.
Additional links: Slides
Author(s): Peg Allen, Matthew Fifolt, Amy Belflower Thomas, Jennifer Clarke-Lofters
Date: 03/2025
Sponsoring organization: Public Health Accreditation Board
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Improving HPV Vaccine Coverage in Tennessee: Addressing Barriers and Expanding Access for Mid-Adults
Examines barriers to achieving optimal human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination uptake in the rural South. Analyzes HPV vaccination rates in Tennessee according to insurance status and rural versus urban location. Discusses cancer prevention and interventions to improve education, awareness, access, and vaccination uptake among rural and uninsured populations.
Author(s): Donald J. Alcendor, Patricia Matthews-Juarez, Mohammad Tabatabai, et al.
Citation: Pathogens, 14(4), 311
Date: 03/2025
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Machine Learning to Predict Dementia for American Indian and Alaska Native Peoples: A Retrospective Cohort Study
Describes a dementia risk prediction model for American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) populations who use Tribal health services. Utilizes data from the Indian Health Service (IHS) National Data Warehouse to analyze dementia risk for 17,398 AI/AN adults, discussing health and demographic predictors of risk.
Author(s): Kayleen Ports, Jiahui Dai, Kyle Conniff, et al.
Citation: The Lancet Regional Health - Americas, 43, 101013
Date: 03/2025
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Legal-Involved Veterans Are Less Likely to Receive Guideline-Concordant Colorectal Cancer Screening
Examines rates of screening for colorectal cancer (CRC) for veterans who are legal-involved. Provides Veterans Health Administration (VHA) electronic health record data on CRC for veterans who are and who are not legal-involved, with further breakdowns by demographic variables, such as rurality.
Author(s): Kenneth J. Nieser, Alex H. S. Harris, Ingrid A. Binswanger, Sean C. Clark, Andrea K. Finlay
Citation: BMC Health Services Research, 25, 333
Date: 03/2025
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Pilot Implementation of a Telehealth Safety Planning Group Intervention for Suicidal Rural Veterans Enhanced by Lived Experience Veteran Peer Participation
Describes a pilot virtual suicide intervention program utilizing lived-experience rural peers offered to rural Arkansas veterans. Discusses successful implementation of peer recovery leaders and program impacts on firearm storage practices. Offers lessons learned and recommendations to those considering a similar program.
Author(s): Marianne Goodman, Madison Strouse, Caroline Boucher, et al.
Citation: Frontiers in Psychiatry, 16
Date: 03/2025
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Rural–Urban Differences in Substance Use During Pregnancy
Examines perinatal substance use in rural and urban populations. Utilizes 2015-2019 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) data to analyze 3,499 pregnant women according to rural, small urban, and large urban location, as well as by demographic variables, health status, and type of substance use.
Author(s): Emma Kathryn Boswell, Olivia M. Hinds, Cassie Odahowski, et al.
Citation: Journal of Rural Health, 41(2), e70018
Date: 03/2025
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Modular Decentralized Water System Associated With Improved Child Health and Increased In-Home Water Use in Remote Alaska Native Communities
Explores the health effects of using Miniature Portable Alternative Sanitation Systems (Mini-PASS) on children 12 years old and younger in tribal communities in Alaska. Discusses Mini-PASS as an affordable option for communities that require a decentralized water system that doesn't require piping or sewer. Highlights the health and sanitation benefits such a system can bring to these communities.
Author(s): Amanda Hansen, Gretchen Day, Marla Wehrli, Laura Eichelberger
Citation: Journal of Water and Health, 23(3), 364–372.
Date: 03/2025
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O the Places Rural Children Will Go…to Get Physical Activity: A Cross Sectional Analysis
Examines locations in which children engage in either moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) or sedentary time in the rural Midwest. Utilizes data from 44 participants who wore an activity tracker over a 7-day period and discusses activity in locations labeled as home, home neighborhood, school, school neighborhood, or 'other'. Discusses health issues and access barriers for rural children related to overweight/obesity.
Author(s): Bethany Forseth, Jordan A. Carlson, Adrian Ortega, et al.
Citation: BMC Public Health, 25, 1188
Date: 03/2025
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Enhancing Access to Nephrology Care: Telenephrology Dashboard Optimization via Human-Centered Design
Examines how the development of the Telenephrology Dashboard for veterans served by the Iowa City Veterans Affairs Health Care System (ICVAHCS) provides improved access to nephrology care and kidney specialists. Describes the methodology used to create and evaluate the dashboard as well as how telehealth tools can serve veterans in predominately rural areas.
Author(s): Melissa Swee, Bharat Kumar, M. Lee Sanders, et al.
Citation: BMC Nephrology, 26, 164
Date: 03/2025
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H5N1(Avian Influenza) Toolkit
Offers resources, videos, information and news regarding Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza A (H5N1) for clinicians, farmworkers, and others working with dairy cattle, domestic poultry, and wild birds.
Date: 03/2025
Sponsoring organization: Upper Midwest Agricultural Safety and Health Center
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