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The Rural Monitor
Articles by Topic: Healthcare needs and services

Healthcare Professionals' Mental Health Needs: Where Can They Go?

January 29, 2020
Recent research has found that not only are nearly 40% of surveyed physicians burned out, but 40% are also experiencing depression. For many reasons — stigma among them — these professionals are not getting mental health support. Physician health programs, in collaboration with professional societies, are trying to change that by working with state licensure boards and other groups.

Physician Burnout: Definition(s), Cause(s), Impact(s), Solution(s)

January 22, 2020
National research has revealed it and rural research suggests it: over 40% of today's physicians are burned out. This in-depth story reviews information about burnout in healthcare professions and for physicians in particular. Along with reviewing causes and impact, a medical school wellness-advocate, a researcher, and a large healthcare organization with a rural footprint shared interventions and solutions.

Burnout: Measurement Tool(s), Cause(s) and Impact(s)

January 22, 2020
Over 40% of today's physicians are burned out. A closer look at research indicates that not only is this a system problem rather than an individual problem, but that burnout impacts a system's revenue streams, healthcare quality, and patient safety and satisfaction. Experts suggest the problem may even be of more concern in rural areas.

It's Possible: Voluntary Accreditation for Rural Public Health Departments

December 18, 2019
With national standards now available for voluntary accreditation, rural public health departments need to determine the feasibility of that activity for their organization. The Public Health Accreditation Board President and CEO joins researchers and experts to share information about accreditation and how rural health departments can achieve that designation.

Understanding Rural Health Departments: Do They Have Unique Accreditation Needs?

December 18, 2019
Governance, organizational size, and other factors may impact rural local health departments' ability to take on voluntary accreditation. In addition to a brief review of these issues, accreditation officials, professional societies, and researchers share how they are working together to better understand these challenges in order to foster equity for all public health departments desiring accreditation.

Taney County Health Department: Accreditation and Holding to a Higher Standard

December 18, 2019
Sharing how national and state voluntary accreditation helps their department meet the public health needs of their county's population — and its 8 million yearly visitors — Missouri's Taney County Health Department director Leslie Marshall also provides tips and ideas for other rural health departments thinking about accreditation.

Diagnosing the Rural COPD Patient: Ask About Symptoms, Use Spirometry

November 20, 2019
The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute calculates that 3.5 million rural Americans have COPD, or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. It's also estimated that hundreds of thousands of rural Americans have the condition and don't know it. Though it is a condition without a cure, it is a condition with hope. The COPD Foundation's Chief Science Officer and a State Captain share how asking questions and doing spirometry can help diagnose the condition.

Office-Based Spirometry: Key to Diagnosing Rural COPD Patients

November 20, 2019
Chronic obstructive lung disease, or COPD, is a disease with a stronghold in rural America: almost double the prevalence and double the mortality rates compared to large urban areas. Though it is a condition with no cure, it's a condition that has treatments — and hope — making proper diagnosis by spirometry imperative.