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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Rural-urban differences

Rural Health Disparities in Asthma Care and Outcomes
Describes the prevalence of asthma in rural communities and the related health disparities in rural areas impacting the effective treatment of asthma.
Author(s): Robert S. Valet, Tamara Perry, Tina V. Hartert
Citation: Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, 123(6), 1220-1225
Date: 06/2009
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Rural-Urban Differences in Health Care Access Vary Across Measures
Compares rural and urban residents for a number of healthcare access indicators, including: having a usual source of care, difficulty accessing a usual source of care, and use of preventive services. Discusses policy implications.
Author(s): Erika Ziller, Jennifer Lenardson
Date: 06/2009
Sponsoring organization: Maine Rural Health Research Center
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The Availability of Family Medicine Residency Training in Rural Locations of the United States
Discusses the role family medicine residency programs play in producing rural primary care physicians. Provides data on the number of family medicine residency training positions in rural and urban areas in 2000 and 2007.
Date: 06/2009
Sponsoring organization: WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
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The Aging of the Primary Care Physician Workforce: Are Rural Locations Vulnerable?
Describes the rural areas of the U.S. where impending retirement threatens access to primary care, and offers potential solutions to the problem. Includes a map showing the percent of near-retirement primary care providers in nonmetropolitan areas by state.
Date: 06/2009
Sponsoring organization: WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
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Profile of Rural Health Insurance Coverage: A Chartbook
Provides information on the health insurance status of rural Americans under the age of 65. Includes recent estimates and changes since 1997 in rural health insurance coverage; differences in the demographic, socio-economic, employment and other risk factors for uninsurance among rural and urban residents; demographic and economic characteristics and employment differences of the rural and urban uninsured; and policy implications for covering the rural uninsured.
Additional links: Research & Policy Brief: Health Insurance Profile Indicates Need to Expand Coverage in Rural Areas, July 2009
Author(s): Jennifer D. Lenardson, Erika C. Ziller, Andrew F. Coburn, Nathaniel J. Anderson
Date: 06/2009
Sponsoring organization: Maine Rural Health Research Center
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Hospital Emergency Departments: Crowding Continues to Occur, and Some Patients Wait Longer than Recommended Time Frames
Provides detailed statistics on wait times in emergency departments. Includes comparison of metropolitan and nonmetropolitan emergency departments.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 05/2009
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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Private Health Insurance in Rural Areas: Challenges and Opportunities
Examines health insurance coverage by rural/urban residence. Discusses differences in premiums and benefits, and identifies policy options to increase rural private health insurance coverage.
Author(s): Erika C. Ziller, Andrew F. Coburn
Date: 04/2009
Sponsoring organization: Maine Rural Health Research Center
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The Crisis in Rural Dentistry
Discusses the need for intensified recruitment efforts to increase dental access and improve oral health in rural areas. Includes data on the supply of generalist dentists in rural areas. Proposes potential solutions that may increase the rural oral health care workforce.
Author(s): Mark P. Doescher, Gina A. Keppel, Susan M. Skillman, Roger A. Rosenblatt
Date: 04/2009
Sponsoring organization: WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
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Threats to the Future Supply of Rural Registered Nurses
Explains how the shortages of registered nurses (RNs) in rural areas may grow as the "baby boom" generation retires and as RNs commute to larger towns and urban areas for work. Presents potential solutions to this foreseen shortage problem.
Date: 04/2009
Sponsoring organization: WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
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The Crisis in Rural General Surgery
Describes issues rural general surgeons face and why maintaining their supply is important in meeting the needs of the aging rural population.
Date: 04/2009
Sponsoring organization: WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
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