Recruitment and Retention for Rural Health Facilities – Resources
Selected recent or important resources focusing on Recruitment and Retention for Rural Health Facilities.
The National Health Service Corps
Provides an overview of the National Health Service Corps (NHSC) program, including the federal scholarship and loan repayment components, and explains how the program affects rural recruitment and retention. Highlights changes in FY2018 focusing on opioid and substance use disorder treatment providers, as well as the provision of funding to expand the number of scholarship and loan repayment awards through the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021.
Date: 04/2025
Sponsoring organization: Congressional Research Service
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Provides an overview of the National Health Service Corps (NHSC) program, including the federal scholarship and loan repayment components, and explains how the program affects rural recruitment and retention. Highlights changes in FY2018 focusing on opioid and substance use disorder treatment providers, as well as the provision of funding to expand the number of scholarship and loan repayment awards through the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021.
Date: 04/2025
Sponsoring organization: Congressional Research Service
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National Health Service Corps Site Reference Guide
Provides clarification for National Health Service Corps (NHSC) sites regarding eligibility requirements, qualification factors, compliance, roles and responsibilities, and other factors for becoming an NHSC approved site. Acts as a supplemental resource to the information provided in the online NHSC Site Application.
Date: 04/2025
Sponsoring organization: Health Resources and Services Administration
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Provides clarification for National Health Service Corps (NHSC) sites regarding eligibility requirements, qualification factors, compliance, roles and responsibilities, and other factors for becoming an NHSC approved site. Acts as a supplemental resource to the information provided in the online NHSC Site Application.
Date: 04/2025
Sponsoring organization: Health Resources and Services Administration
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Rural Workforce Recruitment and Retention Factors
Policy brief discussing non-institutional factors that influence rural healthcare workforce recruitment and retention. Offers policy recommendations to address economic stability, the built environment, social and community contexts, and education access to bolster the rural healthcare workforce.
Author(s): Bryan Weichelt, Kasey DeLynn Shakespear, Tianna Fallgatter
Date: 03/2025
Sponsoring organization: National Rural Health Association
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Policy brief discussing non-institutional factors that influence rural healthcare workforce recruitment and retention. Offers policy recommendations to address economic stability, the built environment, social and community contexts, and education access to bolster the rural healthcare workforce.
Author(s): Bryan Weichelt, Kasey DeLynn Shakespear, Tianna Fallgatter
Date: 03/2025
Sponsoring organization: National Rural Health Association
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Barriers to Surgical Health Care Access in Rural Communities
Discusses surgical healthcare worker shortages in rural communities and strategies to recruit and retain future surgeons. Provides information on the subspeciality in rural areas and the importance of access to surgical care.
Author(s): Kimberly Miller-Hammond, David Anderson,
Citation: The American Surgeon, 91(5)
Date: 02/2025
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Discusses surgical healthcare worker shortages in rural communities and strategies to recruit and retain future surgeons. Provides information on the subspeciality in rural areas and the importance of access to surgical care.
Author(s): Kimberly Miller-Hammond, David Anderson,
Citation: The American Surgeon, 91(5)
Date: 02/2025
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Strategies for Promoting Well-Being Across the Workplace Lifecycle: Case Studies from Rural Community Health Centers, Part 1
A recorded webinar that discusses staff well-being in rural Community Health Centers, with a focus on best practices related to staff recruitment, hiring strategies, and engagement. Includes information on social isolation and loneliness, work-life balance, and social and family needs of healthcare staff in rural areas. Transcript available below description.
Additional links: Rural Recruitment Best Practices
Date: 12/2024
Sponsoring organization: Association of Clinicians for the Underserved
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A recorded webinar that discusses staff well-being in rural Community Health Centers, with a focus on best practices related to staff recruitment, hiring strategies, and engagement. Includes information on social isolation and loneliness, work-life balance, and social and family needs of healthcare staff in rural areas. Transcript available below description.
Additional links: Rural Recruitment Best Practices
Date: 12/2024
Sponsoring organization: Association of Clinicians for the Underserved
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An Enticing Offer: How Some Rural Communities Are Winning the Competition for New Clinicians
Discusses workforce shortages in rural communities, changing workforce demographics, and challenges to recruiting and retaining physicians in rural areas. Features strategies adopted by rural communities and providers to recruit and retain physicians, including leveraging relationships to promote retention and the promotion of rural fellowship and residency programs.
Author(s): Sarah Klein, Patricia Richardson Schoenbrun
Date: 12/2024
Sponsoring organization: Commonwealth Fund
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Discusses workforce shortages in rural communities, changing workforce demographics, and challenges to recruiting and retaining physicians in rural areas. Features strategies adopted by rural communities and providers to recruit and retain physicians, including leveraging relationships to promote retention and the promotion of rural fellowship and residency programs.
Author(s): Sarah Klein, Patricia Richardson Schoenbrun
Date: 12/2024
Sponsoring organization: Commonwealth Fund
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Navigating Rural Health Care: Solutions for Attracting Talent and Caring for the Community
A podcast episode that discusses attracting and recruiting healthcare professionals to rural areas. Features a conversation about rural healthcare workforce solutions between Shannon Wu, podcast host, and Joanne M. Conroy, a physician and CEO/president of Dartmouth Health.
Author(s): Tom Haederle, Shannon Wu, Joanne M. Conroy
Date: 11/2024
Sponsoring organization: American Hospital Association
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A podcast episode that discusses attracting and recruiting healthcare professionals to rural areas. Features a conversation about rural healthcare workforce solutions between Shannon Wu, podcast host, and Joanne M. Conroy, a physician and CEO/president of Dartmouth Health.
Author(s): Tom Haederle, Shannon Wu, Joanne M. Conroy
Date: 11/2024
Sponsoring organization: American Hospital Association
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Workforce Toolkit to Support Critical Access Hospitals and Rural Providers
Toolkit intended to help Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs) and other rural providers improve workforce recruitment and retention efforts. Provides information on healthcare workforce challenges faced by CAHs. Offers examples of external resources that CAHs may utilize to address their workforce needs across four topics: organizational culture and leadership, leveraging partnerships, emergency medical services workforce, and administrative and support staff workforce.
Date: 09/2024
Sponsoring organization: Flex Monitoring Team
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Toolkit intended to help Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs) and other rural providers improve workforce recruitment and retention efforts. Provides information on healthcare workforce challenges faced by CAHs. Offers examples of external resources that CAHs may utilize to address their workforce needs across four topics: organizational culture and leadership, leveraging partnerships, emergency medical services workforce, and administrative and support staff workforce.
Date: 09/2024
Sponsoring organization: Flex Monitoring Team
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Health Professional Retention in Underserved Areas: Findings From the National Health Service Corps Loan Repayment Program Participants in the United States, 2019–2021
Results of a study to identify National Health Service Corps Loan Repayment Program (LRP) participants' patterns of experiences, and to assess whether these patterns were associated with post-service retention. Features statistics with breakdowns by standard LRP, Substance Use Disorder LRP, and Rural Communities LRP.
Author(s): Kathleen Rowan, Savyasachi V. Shah, Alana Knudson, et al.
Citation: Journal of Public Health Policy, 2024
Date: 08/2024
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Results of a study to identify National Health Service Corps Loan Repayment Program (LRP) participants' patterns of experiences, and to assess whether these patterns were associated with post-service retention. Features statistics with breakdowns by standard LRP, Substance Use Disorder LRP, and Rural Communities LRP.
Author(s): Kathleen Rowan, Savyasachi V. Shah, Alana Knudson, et al.
Citation: Journal of Public Health Policy, 2024
Date: 08/2024
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How to Reach the Next Generation of Health Care Workers with Hannibal Regional Healthcare System
Podcast episode featuring a discussion with Susan Wathen, vice president of human resources at Hannibal Regional Healthcare System in Hannibal, Missouri. Describes strategies to recruit and retain clinical and non-clinical workforce for the health system, including tuition payments and stipends, apprenticeships and internships, serving as a site for clinical rotations for medical schools, and more.
Date: 04/2024
Sponsoring organization: American Hospital Association
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Podcast episode featuring a discussion with Susan Wathen, vice president of human resources at Hannibal Regional Healthcare System in Hannibal, Missouri. Describes strategies to recruit and retain clinical and non-clinical workforce for the health system, including tuition payments and stipends, apprenticeships and internships, serving as a site for clinical rotations for medical schools, and more.
Date: 04/2024
Sponsoring organization: American Hospital Association
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Additional resources are available related to this guide. See the full list of resources by topic for: