Substance Use and Misuse in Rural Areas – Resources
Selected recent or important resources focusing on Substance Use and Misuse in Rural Areas.
Combatting the Opioid Epidemic with Provider and Public Education
Highlights from a conversation with Fred Wells Brason II, discussing community-based efforts to reduce opioid misuse and abuse in rural communities. Brason helped found Project Lazarus in Wilkes County, North Carolina, which reduced the overdose rate in Wilkes County by 72 percent over three years. The Project Lazarus model has since spread to more than 20 states and focuses on cross-sector collaboration, public and provider education, and increasing access to treatment.
Citation: Transforming Care: Reporting on Health System Improvement
Date: 03/2017
Sponsoring organization: Commonwealth Fund
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Highlights from a conversation with Fred Wells Brason II, discussing community-based efforts to reduce opioid misuse and abuse in rural communities. Brason helped found Project Lazarus in Wilkes County, North Carolina, which reduced the overdose rate in Wilkes County by 72 percent over three years. The Project Lazarus model has since spread to more than 20 states and focuses on cross-sector collaboration, public and provider education, and increasing access to treatment.
Citation: Transforming Care: Reporting on Health System Improvement
Date: 03/2017
Sponsoring organization: Commonwealth Fund
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Vermont Care Network Advocates for Behavioral Health and Developmental Disability Agencies
Highlights the work of the Vermont Care Network, which supports 16 non-profit agencies that provide behavioral health and developmental disability services in the state. Discusses cross-sector collaboration and integration of mental health, substance use, and developmental disability services with primary care.
Author(s): Jenn Lukens
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 03/2017
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Highlights the work of the Vermont Care Network, which supports 16 non-profit agencies that provide behavioral health and developmental disability services in the state. Discusses cross-sector collaboration and integration of mental health, substance use, and developmental disability services with primary care.
Author(s): Jenn Lukens
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 03/2017
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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Reducing Risky Sex among Rural African American Cocaine Users: A Controlled Trial
Details a study on a STI/HIV risk-reduction program for rural African American cocaine users. Looks specifically the intervention's effect on condom use and sexual risk negotiation skills, among other factors.
Author(s): Katharine E. Stewart, Patricia B. Wright, Brooke E. E. Montgomery, et al.
Citation: Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved, 28(1), 528-547
Date: 02/2017
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Details a study on a STI/HIV risk-reduction program for rural African American cocaine users. Looks specifically the intervention's effect on condom use and sexual risk negotiation skills, among other factors.
Author(s): Katharine E. Stewart, Patricia B. Wright, Brooke E. E. Montgomery, et al.
Citation: Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved, 28(1), 528-547
Date: 02/2017
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Treating the Rural Opioid Epidemic
Policy brief reviewing the barriers to implementing effective, high-quality treatment for mental health and substance abuse issues in rural areas. Includes policy recommendations for addressing these issues, focusing on access to medication assisted treatment (MAT) and funding for rural mental health infrastructure.
Author(s): Christine Hancock, Heidi Mennenga, Nikki King, et al.
Date: 02/2017
Sponsoring organization: National Rural Health Association
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Policy brief reviewing the barriers to implementing effective, high-quality treatment for mental health and substance abuse issues in rural areas. Includes policy recommendations for addressing these issues, focusing on access to medication assisted treatment (MAT) and funding for rural mental health infrastructure.
Author(s): Christine Hancock, Heidi Mennenga, Nikki King, et al.
Date: 02/2017
Sponsoring organization: National Rural Health Association
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Understanding Treatment Gaps for Mental Health, Alcohol, and Drug Use in South Dakota: A Qualitative Study of Rural Perspectives
Details a study on gaps in access to behavioral health treatment in rural South Dakota. Discusses data collected from interviews with people in rural and tribal areas of the state with co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders.
Author(s): Lauren Broffman, Margaret Spurlock, Kristen Dulacki, et al.
Citation: Journal of Rural Health, 22(1), 71-81
Date: 01/2017
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Details a study on gaps in access to behavioral health treatment in rural South Dakota. Discusses data collected from interviews with people in rural and tribal areas of the state with co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders.
Author(s): Lauren Broffman, Margaret Spurlock, Kristen Dulacki, et al.
Citation: Journal of Rural Health, 22(1), 71-81
Date: 01/2017
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A Community Partnership to Respond to the Heroin and Opioid Abuse Epidemic
Discusses the community response to heroin and opioid abuse in rural Carlton County, Minnesota. Details the county's collaboration with the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa and St. Louis County to form the Carlton County Drug Abuse Task Force.
Author(s): Laura C. Palombi, Joe Vargo, Laura Bennett, et al.
Citation: Journal of Rural Health, 33(1), 110-113
Date: 01/2017
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Discusses the community response to heroin and opioid abuse in rural Carlton County, Minnesota. Details the county's collaboration with the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa and St. Louis County to form the Carlton County Drug Abuse Task Force.
Author(s): Laura C. Palombi, Joe Vargo, Laura Bennett, et al.
Citation: Journal of Rural Health, 33(1), 110-113
Date: 01/2017
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Vermont Hub-and-Spoke Model of Care For Opioid Use Disorder: Development, Implementation, and Impact
Discusses the development, application, and effectiveness of a hub-and-spoke system of care developed by addiction medicine physicians and public health officials to expand opioid use disorder (OUD) treatment due the continuous shortage of office-based opioid treatment (OBOT) providers in the rural state of Vermont.
Author(s): John R. Brooklyn, Stacey C. Sigmon
Citation: Journal of Addiction Medicine, 11(4), 286-292
Date: 2017
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Discusses the development, application, and effectiveness of a hub-and-spoke system of care developed by addiction medicine physicians and public health officials to expand opioid use disorder (OUD) treatment due the continuous shortage of office-based opioid treatment (OBOT) providers in the rural state of Vermont.
Author(s): John R. Brooklyn, Stacey C. Sigmon
Citation: Journal of Addiction Medicine, 11(4), 286-292
Date: 2017
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Stem the Tide: Addressing the Opioid Epidemic
Presents a report on various methods hospitals and health systems can use to address the opioid epidemic. Discusses non-opioid pain management, prescribing practices, and treatment for substance use disorders (SUDs), among other topics. Highlights several rural programs and examples throughout.
Date: 2017
Sponsoring organization: American Hospital Association
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Presents a report on various methods hospitals and health systems can use to address the opioid epidemic. Discusses non-opioid pain management, prescribing practices, and treatment for substance use disorders (SUDs), among other topics. Highlights several rural programs and examples throughout.
Date: 2017
Sponsoring organization: American Hospital Association
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A Socioecological Approach to Addressing Tobacco-Related Health Disparities
Presents a sociological approach to reducing tobacco use. Focuses on addressing tobacco use in groups where usage is still prevalent. Analyzes factors that predispose various groups to tobacco use and discusses methods for prevention and cessation.
Additional links: Executive Summary
Date: 2017
Sponsoring organization: National Cancer Institute
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Presents a sociological approach to reducing tobacco use. Focuses on addressing tobacco use in groups where usage is still prevalent. Analyzes factors that predispose various groups to tobacco use and discusses methods for prevention and cessation.
Additional links: Executive Summary
Date: 2017
Sponsoring organization: National Cancer Institute
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Opioid Overdose Experience, Risk Behaviors, and Knowledge in Drug Users from a Rural Versus an Urban Setting
Highlights a study on the overdose knowledge of opioid users from both rural and urban areas. Details participants' experience with overdosing and their responses to the Brief Opioid Overdose Knowledge (BOOK) questionnaire.
Author(s): Kelly E. Dunn, Frederick S. Barrett, Claudia Yepez-Laubach, et al.
Citation: Journal of Substance Abuse and Treatment, 71, 1-7
Date: 12/2016
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Highlights a study on the overdose knowledge of opioid users from both rural and urban areas. Details participants' experience with overdosing and their responses to the Brief Opioid Overdose Knowledge (BOOK) questionnaire.
Author(s): Kelly E. Dunn, Frederick S. Barrett, Claudia Yepez-Laubach, et al.
Citation: Journal of Substance Abuse and Treatment, 71, 1-7
Date: 12/2016
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Additional resources are available related to this guide. See the full list of resources by topic for:
- Alcohol use
- Behavioral health
- Behavioral health workforce
- Illicit drug use
- Prescription drug misuse
- Substance use and misuse
- Tobacco use
Last Updated: 5/27/2025