Conducting Rural Health Research, Needs Assessments, and Program Evaluations – Funding & Opportunities

AHRQ Small Research Projects to Advance the Science of Primary Care (R01 and R03)
Funding to support small research projects that advance the role and capacity of primary care to increase the value and quality of care and improve patient outcomes and population health. Rural populations are among the priority populations.

Advancing Healthcare for Older Adults from Populations that Experience Health Disparities (R01 - Clinical Trial Optional)
Funding for innovative, multi-level healthcare research for older adults from populations that experience health disparities.

The Role of Work in Health Disparities in the U.S. (R01 Clinical Trials Optional)
Grants for innovative population-based research in how work or occupation influences health outcomes and health status among health disparity populations and how work functions as a social determinant of health.

Native American Research Centers for Health (NARCH) Planning Grants (R34 - Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
Funding to support federally recognized American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) tribes, tribal colleges and universities, tribal health programs, or tribal organizations to plan and conduct preparatory work for developing competitive NARCH applications.

AHRQ Health Services Research Demonstration and Dissemination Grants (R18)
Supports the dissemination and implementation of research projects related to AHRQ's mission to produce evidence to make healthcare safer, higher quality, more accessible, equitable, and affordable. AHRQ's priorities include an interest in frontier and rural healthcare delivery.

AHRQ Health Services Research Projects (R01)
Support for specified health services research projects related to AHRQ's mission to produce evidence to make healthcare safer, higher quality, more accessible, equitable, and affordable. AHRQ's priorities include an interest in rural and frontier healthcare delivery.

AHRQ Small Health Services Research Grant Program (R03)
Supports different types of health services research projects, including pilot and feasibility studies; secondary analysis of existing data; small, self-contained research projects; development of research methodology; and development of new research technology. Rural and frontier areas are considered a priority population.

Research to Advance the Science of Primary Care (R01)
Funding to support research projects that advance the understanding of the role, capacity, and value of primary care to improve patient outcomes and population health.

Mercer University School of Medicine Ph.D. in Rural Health Sciences Stipend and Assistantship Opportunity
Stipend, tuition waiver, and assistantship opportunity while working on a Ph.D. in Rural Health Sciences at Mercer University School of Medicine in Macon, Georgia. The program is designed to prepare students for research careers focused on improving the health of rural areas using multidisciplinary approaches.

PCORI Ambassador Program
A national volunteer network designed to engage the healthcare community in strengthening the patient-centered comparative clinical effectiveness research (CER) and increasing the dissemination of PCORI-funded​ research. PCORI supports research to give patients a better understanding of the prevention, treatment and care options available while considering potential for differences in treatment effectiveness among subpopulations, such as rural residents.