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Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Wellness, health promotion, and disease prevention

Implementing Medication-Assisted Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder in Rural Primary Care: Environmental Scan Volume 1
Details challenges and barriers to implementing medication-assisted treatment (MAT) for opioid use disorder (OUD) in a primary care setting, such as healthcare policy, workforce, and financing, among others. Includes 250 tools and resources to help overcome barriers and support implementation MAT in rural areas.
Additional links: Volume 2: Tools and Resources
Author(s): Garrett E. Moran, Caroline M. Snyder, Rebecca F. Noftsinger, Joshua K. Noda
Date: 10/2017
Sponsoring organization: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
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The Federal Response to the Opioid Crisis
Presents the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) hearing on the government's response on the opioid crisis. Includes testimonies from SAMHSA, CDC, NIH, and the FDA regarding current efforts to increase access to treatment for opioid addiction and promote preventative measures across the U.S.
Additional links: Written Testimony
Date: 10/2017
Sponsoring organization: Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions
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Agriculture and Health Sectors Collaborate in Addressing Population Health
An overview of the collaboration between the Cooperative Extension Service and the health sector in various states and the impact this collaboration has on population health through community-based efforts, including health and wellness and 4-H programs, and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Describes a case study of a collaborative model in New Mexico.
Author(s): Arthur Kaufman, Jon Boren, Sonja Koukel, et al.
Citation: Annals of Family Medicine,15(5), 475-480
Date: 09/2017
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Variations in Obesity Rates between US Counties: Impacts of Activity Access, Food Environments, and Settlement Patterns
Describes differences in obesity rates among U.S. counties based on rurality, region, poverty level, and ethnicity. Analyzes access to physical activity facilities, food environments, and settlement patterns, defined as residential density and car dependence, to determine potential explanations for geographic variations.
Author(s): Peter Congdon
Citation: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 14(9), 1023
Date: 09/2017
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Scaling up HCV Prevention and Treatment Interventions in Rural USA – Model Projections for Tackling an Increasing Epidemic
Highlights a study on the rise in hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections in rural people who inject drugs (PWID) and the necessary interventions to reduce HCV outbreaks in rural communities. Focuses on a rural county in Indiana and evaluates the medication-assisted treatment (MAT) efficacy, syringe-services program (SSP) efficacy, and the PWID population size of the intervention, among other factors.
Author(s): Hannah Fraser, Jon Zibbell, Thomas Hoerger, et al.
Citation: Addiction, 113(1), 173-182
Date: 09/2017
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Health Service Accessibility and Risk in Cervical Cancer Prevention: Comparing Rural Versus Nonrural Residence in New Mexico
Details a study on how geographic accessibility affects rural women's cervical cancer screening rates. Compares rural and urban areas in New Mexico. Breaks down data by travel distance, year, and services provided.
Author(s): Yolanda J. McDonald, Daniel W. Goldberg, Isabel C. Scarinci, et al.
Citation: Journal of Rural Health, 33(4), 382-392
Date: 09/2017
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Feasibility of a Low-Cost Hearing Screening in Rural Indiana
Examines the feasibility of a low-cost telephone administered hearing test in rural Indiana and identifies challenges, barriers, and implementation strategies associated with the telephone hearing test. Determines if a focus group can change the hearing health attitudes of rural residents.
Author(s): Khalid M. Khan, Sylvanna L. Bielko, Priscilla A. Barnes, Sydney S. Evans, Anna L. K. Main
Citation: BMC Public Health, 17, 715
Date: 09/2017
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Culture and Self-Determination Provide Strength to Heal
Describes how the Seneca Nation of Indians has incorporated its culture into programs and community initiatives. Examples include school and adult Seneca language immersion programs, restoring indigenous plants, cultivating native animals, and the Seneca Strong program to address substance abuse by incorporating prevention and sobriety programming into traditional rites of passage, outdoor skills camps, and powwows. The Seneca Nation of Indians (New York) received the 2017 Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's Culture of Health Prize.
Date: 09/2017
Sponsoring organization: Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
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Live Healthy, Live Well, 'Live Algoma'
An overview of a rural community (Algoma, Wisconsin) coming together to set goals and work on projects focused on health and wellness. Projects included modifying an old bank to develop an alternative school called Pathfinder, building the Algoma Community Wellness Center, and collaborating with local industries and schools to create new learning opportunities for students. Algoma is a recipient of the 2017 Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's Culture of Health Prize.
Date: 09/2017
Sponsoring organization: Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
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A Community Holding Hands to Bridge its Divide
Describes the actions taken and programs developed by the residents of Garrett County, Maryland, in response to the economic, cultural, and health challenges they face. Working together, the Garrett County residents have been able to provide scholarships to every high school graduate to attend community college for free, develop 700 affordable, low-income, mixed-income, and workforce housing units, and more. Garrett County is a recipient of the 2017 Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's Culture of Health Prize.
Date: 09/2017
Sponsoring organization: Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
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