Rural Health Information Hub Latest News

Availability of Here You Can Find Research on Dialysis Facilities and Primary Care Safety Net Providers in Minoritized Racial/Ethnic Group Areas

Two briefs from the Rural and Minority Health Research Center document disparities in geographic access to health services for areas containing a high proportion of minoritized racial/ethnic group residents. The term “minoritized” refers to groups that have been historically marginalized by society and government institutions.

Here You Can Read About the August Grants in Motion: Training the Rural Public Health Workforce

 The Rural Health Information Hub’s quarterly highlight of FORHP-funded projects is the Rural Public Health Workforce Training Network Program (RPHWTN).  The goal of the RPHWTN program is to expand public health capacity in rural and tribal areas with job development, training, and placement through four training tracks: 1) community health support, 2) community paramedicine, 3) health information technology and/or telehealth technical support, and 4) case management and/or respiratory therapy.

3RNET System for Provider Recruitment is Celebrating 10 Years this August!

  The organization originally formed as the National Rural Recruitment and Retention Network helps rural practices expand their reach for posting job vacancies. This online event features Provider Retention & Information System Management (PRISM) that collects and shares real-time data to enhance clinician recruitment and retention. PRISM is a collaboration of State Primary Care Offices, Offices of Rural Health, Area Health Education Centers, and other organizations that have partnered to collect data to identify and document outcomes to enhance the retention of clinicians.  Through its design, this collaborative approach builds shared interest, cooperation, and group wisdom in best practices to promote retention among the states. Registration is required for this online event. The event is scheduled for Wednesday, August 30, 2023 at 3:00 pm ET.

CMS Requests Applications for New Primary Care Model

This week, the Innovation Center at the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services released a Request for Applications detailing policies and requirements for the Making Care Primary Model. Interested applicants may apply later this month when the Application Portal opens. The model will launch on July 1, 2024, in eight states: Colorado, North Carolina, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Minnesota, Massachusetts, and Washington, and will operate over a ten-year period.  This model aims to strengthen coordination between patients’ primary care clinicians, specialists, social service providers, and behavioral health clinicians, to drive improved chronic disease prevention, fewer emergency room visits, and better health outcomes.  While Rural Health Clinics are not eligible, other rural primary care providers (including Federally Qualified Health Centers) may seek to participate.

Take A Look at the Latest Suicide Data and the Changes Over the Last Decade

  The Kaiser Family Foundation examines newly released provisional data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showing a record high of 49,369 suicide deaths in 2022.  Rates were highest among American Indian and Alaska Native people, males, and people who live in rural areas.  Suicide by firearm is identified as the primary driver of the increase – up by 8 percent from 2020 and another 3 percent in 2022, while deaths from other suicide methods remained more stable.

A Heat-Related EMS Activation Surveillance Dashboard Has Been Released

  An interactive map shows county-level Emergency Medical Services (EMS) activations related to heat illness.  Selecting the Disparity Explorer tab shows patient data related to EMS response time, rate of EMS activation, number of deaths, and EMS transportation for patients at the urban, suburban, rural, and frontier levels.  Updated weekly, the dashboard is sponsored by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Office of Climate Change and Health Equity at the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services.