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Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Primary care

Increasing Knowledge of Palliative Care in South Dakota
Describes the creation of the South Dakota Palliative Care Network and discusses its work to increase knowledge of palliative care among rural healthcare professionals, nursing students, and community members in the state.
Author(s): Allee Mead
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 11/2022
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Patterns of Health Care Use among Rural-Urban Medicare Beneficiaries Age 85 and Older, 2010-2017
Policy brief examining how rural and urban Medicare beneficiaries age 85+ differ in terms of their socioeconomic and health characteristics that may inform healthcare use. Features statistics on trends in healthcare use, including inpatient and emergency department care, outpatient and prescription services, specialists and dentists, and home health and durable medical equipment, with breakdowns by urban and rural location.
Author(s): Yvonne Jonk, Heidi O'Connor, Amanda Burgess, Carly Milkowski
Date: 11/2022
Sponsoring organization: Maine Rural Health Research Center
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The Path to Coordinated Federal Leadership to Strengthen Primary Health Care
Discusses the potential of a Secretary's Council on Primary Care within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Describes primary care's role in addressing policy challenges related to health equity, payment, workforce training, pandemic recovery and resilience, the opioid crisis, and mental health. Offers recommendations to include and strengthen high-quality primary care as part of a long-term vision of a high-value healthcare system. Includes rural references throughout.
Author(s): Robert L. Phillips Jr., Christopher Koller, Alice Hm Chen
Date: 11/2022
Sponsoring organization: Milbank Memorial Fund
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The Future of Telehealth After COVID-19: New Opportunities and Challenges
Provides an overview of the current evidence regarding telehealth's impact on equitable access to care and on quality of care, patient outcomes, and cost. Describes the COVID-19 pandemic-related regulatory flexibilities for mental health and substance use disorder services. Discusses the importance of telehealth on primary and specialty care during the public health emergency (PHE). Offers recommendations for Medicare telehealth policies to promote better outcomes for Medicare beneficiaries and value for the Medicare program.
Additional links: Medicare Telehealth Utilization and Spending Impacts 2019-2021, Webinar Recording
Author(s): Julia Harris, Sabah Bhatnagar, Brady Newell, et al.
Date: 10/2022
Sponsoring organization: Bipartisan Policy Center
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Rural Health Clinics: Focusing on the Patient
Brief overview of the history of Rural Health Clinics (RHCs), from their origins in the Rural Health Clinic Services Act of 1977, and into the present, as they continue to provide an array of vital services to rural communities.
Date: 10/2022
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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A Career of Influencing Rural Healthcare Delivery: Bill Finerfrock and the NARHC Origin Story
Reviews the founding of the National Association of Rural Health Clinics (NARHC), with insights from long-time NARHC executive director Bill Finerfrock about collaborative work with other rural health organizations to support the Rural Health Clinic program.
Author(s): Kay Miller Temple
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 10/2022
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Rural Health Clinic Program at 45 Years: Created for Access and Still Delivering Care
Features rural health policy experts, researchers, and clinicians discussing the impact of the Rural Health Clinic (RHC) program on outpatient healthcare delivery.
Author(s): Kay Miller Temple
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 10/2022
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Family Physicians and Maternal Health in Rural America, with Julie Wood and Zita Magloire
An episode of the Exploring Rural Health podcast featuring Dr. Julie Wood, senior vice president of research, science and health of the public at the American Academy of Family Physicians, and Dr. Zita Magloire, a practicing family physician in Cairo, Georgia. Focuses on rural family physicians and the challenges and joys of providing maternal care in rural areas.
Date: 10/2022
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Impact of Concurrent Hospice Care on Primary Care Visits among Children in Southern Rural Appalachia
Explores the relationship between concurrent hospice care and primary care visits among children in southern rural Appalachia between 2011 and 2013. Describes demographic and clinical characteristics of children in hospice care in this study. Discusses the findings in relation to the children's residence in medically underresourced areas.
Author(s): Mary Lou Clark Fornehed, Radion Svynarenko, Lisa C. Lindley
Citation: Journal of Pediatric Health care, 36(5), 438-442
Date: 09/2022
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Mapping Rural and Urban Veterans' Spatial Access to Primary Care Following the MISSION Act
Presents a study on primary care access for rural, micropolitan, and urban areas after the implementation of the 2018 MISSION Act. Bases findings on supply and demand of and for primary care providers in regions of varying rurality for veterans in Oregon.
Author(s): Eliana Sullivan, Whitney E. Zahnd, Jane M. Zhu, et al.
Citation: Journal of General Internal Medicine, 37(12), 2941-2947
Date: 09/2022
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