2012 Research Publications

Browse the full list of research publications from the Rural Health Research Centers.

Products – Freely accessible products include policy briefs, fact sheets, full reports, chartbooks, and interactive data websites.

Journal Articles – Articles in peer-reviewed journals may require a subscription or affiliation with a subscribing library. For these publications, Gateway lists the article citation, a brief summary, a link to additional information and access to the full-text of the article, if available.

Profile of Rural Health Clinics: Medicare Payments & Common Diagnoses: Review of 2009 Medicare Outpatient Claims Data
North Carolina Rural Health Research and Policy Analysis Center
Date: 12/2012
Using data extracted from 2009 Medicare outpatient provider claims, this brief presents a summary profile of Medicare billing and reimbursement activity for independent and provider-based RHCs.
The Contributions of Community Colleges to the Education of Allied Health Professionals in Rural Areas of the United States (Final Report)
WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
Date: 10/2012
Community colleges educate a significant portion of the nation's allied health workforce, and because they have a history of educating residents of their communities for local jobs, they are important to the economies of many rural communities.
The Contributions of Community Colleges to the Education of Allied Health Professionals in Rural Areas of the United States
Policy Brief
WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
Date: 10/2012
This policy brief describes where community college allied health education programs (of those most relevant to rural healthcare delivery) are located in relation to rural populations and small rural hospitals.
Receipt of Recommended Radiation Therapy Among Rural and Urban Cancer Patients (Summary)
WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
Date: 10/2012
This study examines whether rural patients with cancer are less likely than their urban counterparts to receive recommended radiation therapy. The study also identifies factors influencing rural versus urban differences in radiation therapy receipt.
Characteristics of Rural RNs Who Live and Work in Different Communities
Policy Brief
WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
Date: 09/2012
This policy brief explores why many registered nurses living in rural areas of the United States leave their communities to work in other rural and urban communities.
Characteristics of Rural RNs Who Live and Work in Different Communities (Final Report)
WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
Date: 09/2012
This study explores factors associated with registered nurses' decisions to commute away from their rural areas of residence for work.
The Current and Future Role and Impact of Medicaid in Rural Health
RUPRI Health Panel: Rural Policy Analysis and Applications
Date: 09/2012
This report outlines and describes the current Medicaid program and its importance to rural America. It also discusses rural implications of program expansion, including whether and how states choose to implement changes.
Stand-Alone Prescription Drug Plans Dominated the Rural Market in 2011
RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
Date: 09/2012
This report shows that as of May 2011, 59.1% of rural Medicare beneficiaries were enrolled in Medicare Part D through insurance plans that provide coverage for prescription medications. It also provides further detail, including urban and rural enrollment by type of plan and by state.
Health Care Access and Use Among the Rural Uninsured
Journal Article
Maine Rural Health Research Center
Date: 08/2012
Examines whether uninsured rural residents have different patterns of healthcare use than their urban counterparts, and the factors associated with any differences.
Quality Reporting for CAHs and Rural PPS Hospitals: The Potential Impact of Composite Measures
Policy Brief
Upper Midwest Rural Health Research Center
Date: 07/2012
As a part of a larger project that examined alternative ways of identifying high quality rural hospitals, this report assesses the use of composite scores for public reporting of quality measures as one way of addressing the low volume issue for small rural hospitals.
Childhood Asthma in Rural-Urban Areas
Policy Brief
West Virginia Rural Health Research Center
Date: 06/2012
This policy brief examines how asthma may be related to rural areas adjacent or non-adjacent to larger population centers, to variation in measures of air quality, to varying levels of agricultural and animal production, and to other characteristics such as obesity, race/ethnicity, or health insurance.
Childhood Asthma in Rural-Urban Areas (Final Report)
West Virginia Rural Health Research Center
Date: 05/2012
This report examines how asthma may be related to rural areas adjacent or non-adjacent to larger population centers, to variation in measures of air quality, to varying levels of agricultural and animal production, and to other characteristics such as obesity, race/ethnicity, or health insurance.
March 2012: Rural Medicare Advantage Enrollment Update
RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
Date: 05/2012
This policy brief presents key findings on rural Medicare Advantage enrollment and on rural Preferred Provider Organization enrollment.
Flux in Loan Repayment Programs for Healthcare Professionals With States' Budget Cuts and National Health Service Corps Budget Increases
North Carolina Rural Health Research and Policy Analysis Center
Date: 05/2012
This brief discusses how states' loan repayment programs are weathering economic conditions and competition with the expanding federal National Health Service Corps Loan Repayment Program. It also presents survey results from directors of 96 of the 98 identified state programs addressing changes in workforce size/composition and budget changes.
The Use of Hospitalists in Small Rural Hospitals
Upper Midwest Rural Health Research Center
Date: 04/2012
This policy brief describes the results of a survey of small rural hospitals that use hospitalists, who are physicians, physician assistants, or nurse practitioners who assume responsibility for patient care during inpatient hospital stays.
Why Use Swing Beds? Conversations With Hospital Administrators and Staff (Findings Brief)
North Carolina Rural Health Research and Policy Analysis Center
Date: 04/2012
In this study, we interview hospital administrators and staff about the use of swing beds. Topics include the role of swing beds in patient care, swing bed volume and financial considerations, swing beds in the context of all community post-acute skilled care, and swing beds as a benefit for community residents.
Adolescent Alcohol Use: Do Risk and Protective Factors Explain Rural-Urban Differences? (Policy Brief)
Maine Rural Health Research Center
Date: 03/2012
This policy brief finds that after controlling for a broad range of key risk and protective factors, it is clear that an unexplained rural effect persists with rural adolescents still exhibiting higher alcohol use than their urban counterparts.
Adolescent Alcohol Use: Do Risk and Protective Factors Explain Rural-Urban Differences? (Working Paper)
Maine Rural Health Research Center
Date: 03/2012
This study examines alcohol use among rural and urban adolescents between the ages of 12 and 17.
State Policy Levers for Addressing Preventive Dental Care Disparities for Rural Children: Medicaid Reimbursement to Non-Dental Clinicians for Fluoride Varnish and Dental Hygiene Supervision in Primary Care Safety Net Settings (Key Facts)
Rural and Minority Health Research Center
Date: 03/2012
This report provides keys facts regarding preventive dental care disparities for rural children.
State Policy Levers for Addressing Preventive Dental Care Disparities for Rural Children: Medicaid Reimbursement to Non-Dental Clinicians for Fluoride Varnish and Dental Hygiene Supervision in Primary Care Safety Net Settings (Full Report)
Rural and Minority Health Research Center
Date: 03/2012
This report addresses preventive dental care disparities for rural children by studying access to fluoride varnish applications and the extent that dental hygienists can provide select preventive dental services in primary care safety net settings.
Effect of Outpatient Visits and Discharge Destination on Potentially Preventable Readmissions for Congestive Heart Failure and Bacterial Pneumonia (Final Report)
Upper Midwest Rural Health Research Center
Date: 03/2012
This study explored the relationship between potentially preventable readmissions and use of outpatient follow-up care, discharge destination, rural versus urban residence of the patient, and time to follow-up care.
Effect of Outpatient Visits and Discharge Destination on Potentially Preventable Readmissions for Congestive Heart Failure and Bacterial Pneumonia
Policy Brief
Upper Midwest Rural Health Research Center
Date: 03/2012
This brief explores the relationship between potentially preventable readmissions and use of outpatient follow-up care, discharge destination, rural versus urban patients, and time to follow-up care. These factors were examined in a large population of Medicare patients with hospital stays for congestive heart failure or bacterial pneumonia.
Communities Served by Rural Medicare Dependent Hospitals
North Carolina Rural Health Research and Policy Analysis Center
Date: 03/2012
This findings brief explores the potential consequences of termination of the Medicare Dependent Hospitals (MDHs) program by comparing MDHs to rural prospective payment system hospitals in terms of utilization and the characteristics of the communities they serve.
Rural Residency Training for Family Medicine Physicians: Graduate Early-Career Outcomes
WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
Date: 01/2012
This policy brief describes the characteristics of family physicians who have completed graduate medical education in Rural Training Track residency programs and their outcomes in terms of practice in rural communities, health professional shortage areas, and safety net facilities.
Affordable Insurance Exchanges and Enrollment: Meeting Rural Needs
RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
Date: 01/2012
This report reviews the principal characteristics of exchanges that will affect how well they meet the needs of rural residents, including the structure, governance, and process for enrollment.
Affordable Insurance Exchanges: A Summary of Characteristics and Rural Implications
RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
Date: 01/2012
This summary provides a quick reference to selected critical decisions being made about health insurance exchanges that will affect access to affordable insurance plans in rural America.
Water Fluoridation and Dental Health Indicators in Rural and Urban Areas of the United States
Policy Brief
West Virginia Rural Health Research Center
Date: 01/2012
This policy brief investigates the availability of fluoridated water across urban and rural settings.
Lower Rehospitalization Rates Among Rural Medicare Beneficiaries With Diabetes
Journal Article
Rural and Minority Health Research Center
Date: 2012
Evaluates 30-day readmission rates of Medicare beneficiaries with diabetes in rural areas.
Missing the Handoff: Post-Hospitalization Follow-up Care Among Rural Medicare Beneficiaries With Diabetes
Journal Article
Rural and Minority Health Research Center
Date: 2012
Analyzes urban and rural differences in post-discharge physician follow-up care using data from 2005 Medicare claims files.
Descriptive Analysis of the Respiratory Health Status of Persons Exposed to Libby Amphibole Asbestos
Journal Article
Date: 2012
This article provides a descriptive analysis of the respiratory health status of persons exposed to asbestos.