This website is being reviewed for updates. Some information is offline. We apologize for any inconvenience.
Skip to main content
Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Mental Health – Resources

Selected recent or important resources focusing on Rural Mental Health.

Mental Health Outcomes Among Patients Living in US Counties Lacking Broadband Access and Psychiatrists
Presents a study on mental health access for people who live in counties without psychiatrists and broadband coverage. Discusses the expansion of telehealth services for mental healthcare and consultation. Aims to evaluate mental health access in mostly rural counties with a workforce shortage and a lack of broadband access.
Author(s): Tarun Ramesh, Ryan K. McBain, Jonathan H. Cantor, et al.
Citation: JAMA Network Open, 6(9), e2333781
Date: 09/2023
view details
'Planting Seeds of Change': In Rural Counties, Expanding Jail-Based Mental Health Services is a Community Effort
Examines the challenges of providing access to mental health services in rural jails. Features a telehealth counseling program in rural Texas and an Ohio program offering case management and mental health services to people in the county jail.
Author(s): Gretel Kauffman
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 09/2023
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
view details
SAMHSA Strategic Plan 2023-2026
Details the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's framework and funding priorities for 2023-2026. Discusses priorities such as strengthening the behavioral health workforce, suicide prevention, and behavioral health integration, among other issues. Highlights behavioral health equity measures that address rural communities.
Date: 08/2023
Sponsoring organization: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
view details
Rural Health Research Recap: Rural Behavioral Health Workforce
Summarizes recent research from Rural Health Research Centers examining numbers of social workers, psychologists, psychiatric nurse practitioners, and counselors. Features statistics including percent of counties without behavioral health professionals from 2014-2021 and behavioral health professionals per 100,000 residents from 2014-2021, with breakdowns by urban or rural location and profession type.
Author(s): Jessica Rosencrans
Date: 08/2023
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Research Gateway
view details
The Urgent Need for Firearm Suicide Prevention Research in the Rural US
Highlights a study on rural firearm suicide. Discusses the role of firearms in suicide mortality and breaks down suicide data in the U.S. and West Virginia by rurality and method.
Author(s): Eric W Lundstrom, Jacob K Pence, Gordon S Smith
Citation: Rural and Remote Health, 23, 8267
Date: 08/2023
view details
Study Protocol for a Multi-Level Cross-Sectional Study on the Equitable Reach and Implementation of Coordinated Specialty Care for Early Psychosis
Examines ways to improve outreach and access to rural and underserved communities in relation to coordinated specialty care (CSC) for early psychosis. Discusses the creation of a geospatial database of CSC programs in the U.S. that includes program-level data, provider-level data, and neighborhood-level census data.
Author(s): Oladunni Oluwoye, Ari Lissau, Sheldon Stokes, et al.
Citation: Implementation Science Communications, 4, 90
Date: 08/2023
view details
A Look at the Latest Suicide Data and Change Over the Last Decade
Examines suicide death rates by race/ethnicity, sex, age, and rurality between 2011 and 2021 by using CDC WONDER data. Includes data on the number of deaths by suicide overall and by firearms using provisional 2022 data. Describes these trends in relation to the implementation of the 988 crisis number in July 2022.
Author(s): Heather Saunders, Nirmita Panchal
Date: 08/2023
Sponsoring organization: KFF
view details
Feasibility of Delivering a Virtual 1-Day Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Workshop to Rural Veterans Through Community Partnerships
Examines the efficacy of a one day virtual workshop for veterans undergoing psychological stress. Breaks down participant data by age, sex, branch of service, and rural versus urban residence, among other measures. Highlights the results of the pilot project and makes recommendations based on findings.
Author(s): Lilian Dindo, Angelic Chaison, Merlyn Rodrigues, et al.
Citation: Contemporary Clinical Trials Communication, 34, 101178
Date: 08/2023
view details
Urban-Rural Differences in Mental Health Concerns: Findings from a Survey of the American General Population
Provides metro versus nonmetro population comparisons related to mental health perceptions, concerns, knowledge, and awareness, utilizing 2022 National Alliance on Mental Illness survey data.
Author(s): Adee Athiyaman
Date: 07/2023
Sponsoring organization: Illinois Institute for Rural Affairs
view details
Rural Social Isolation, with Carrie Henning-Smith
An episode of the Exploring Rural Health podcast featuring Carrie Henning-Smith, PhD, Deputy Director of the University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center. Focuses on rural social isolation, the negative effects it has on wellness, and how it can be mitigated.
Date: 07/2023
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
view details

Additional resources are available related to this guide. See the full list of resources by topic for:


Last Updated: 2/18/2025