Rural Health
Research Gateway

Nurses and nurse practitioners

Completed Projects

Listed by project completion date. You can also view these projects alphabetically.

2024

  • Trends in Health Workforce Supply in the Rural U.S.
    Rural communities in the U.S. have struggled to recruit and sustain sufficient health professionals to ensure adequate access to care. This study used multiple sources of data to describe the geographic distribution (rural/urban, regional, and intra-rural) of numerous types of health professionals.
    Research center: WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
    Topics: Allied health professionals, Healthcare access, Mental and behavioral health, Nurses and nurse practitioners, Oral health, Physician assistants, Physicians

2021

  • Post-acute Care Trajectories for Rural Medicare Beneficiaries
    Utilization and costs of post-acute care for Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries have grown rapidly during the last decade. This study examined post-acute care utilization for rural Medicare beneficiaries following acute hospitalization, describing use of home health and skilled nursing care and trajectories of care across settings.
    Research center: WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
    Topics: Aging, Allied health professionals, Health services, Home health, Hospitals and clinics, Medicare, Nurses and nurse practitioners, Post-acute care
  • What Is the Geographic Distribution of the Workforce with a DEA Waiver to Prescribe Buprenorphine?
    This project updated statistics on the supply of providers (physicians, nurse practitioners and physician assistants) with a Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) waiver to prescribe buprenorphine and examine supply trends over time and also established baseline numbers of other eligible providers (e.g., midwives, clinical nurse specialists).
    Research center: WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
    Topics: Health services, Healthcare access, Mental and behavioral health, Nurses and nurse practitioners, Physician assistants, Physicians, Substance use and treatment, Workforce

2020

  • Malpractice Claims Among Rural and Urban Providers: Do State Telehealth Laws Make a Difference?
    This project examines trends in state telehealth laws and whether they have affected the rural and urban malpractice environments differentially. Data from the National Practitioner Data Bank are used to determine whether changes in telehealth laws are associated with increased malpractice claims and other adverse actions against providers.
    Research center: Southwest Rural Health Research Center
    Topics: Allied health professionals, Legislation and regulation, Nurses and nurse practitioners, Telehealth, Workforce
  • Team-Based Primary Care in Rural Communities
    This project will describe primary care practice structure in rural communities and quantify characteristics of primary care teams associated with high-quality care.
    Research center: University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center
    Topics: Allied health professionals, Healthcare access, Nurses and nurse practitioners, Physicians, Quality, Rural statistics and demographics, Workforce
  • The Supply and Distribution of the Primary Care Health Workforce in Rural America
    This study will describe the supply and distribution of primary care providers in the rural U.S. at national, regional, and state levels using the most recent data available. Primary care health professionals include family physicians, general practitioners, general internists, pediatricians, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants.
    Research center: WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
    Topics: Nurses and nurse practitioners, Physician assistants, Physicians, Workforce
  • Who Provides Mental Health Services to Rural Medicare Beneficiaries?
    Most rural counties do not have a psychiatrist to care for the common conditions of depression or anxiety. This study describes the provider workforce that cares for rural elderly patients with depression/anxiety, including regional and rural-urban variations in mental healthcare provision.
    Research center: WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
    Topics: Health services, Medicare, Mental and behavioral health, Nurses and nurse practitioners, Physician assistants, Physicians, Substance use and treatment, Workforce

2019

  • Examining the Legal Landscape in Rural America: Implications for the Healthcare Workforce, Access to Care, and Population Health
    This project explores potential rural/urban differences in the prevalence of malpractice claims, clinical privilege actions, and state licensure actions among health care providers. We will also examine whether variations in nurse practitioner scope of practice laws affect rural residents differentially, especially with respect to preventive care.
    Research center: Southwest Rural Health Research Center
    Topics: Allied health professionals, Health services, Legislation and regulation, Nurses and nurse practitioners, Workforce
  • Perceived Facilitators and Barriers to Rural Ambulatory Care Practice Among Registered Nurses
    Although a quarter of all registered nurses work in ambulatory care settings, little research has addressed the factors associated with their remaining in the profession and current job settings. The study surveyed a sample of rural and urban nurses to ascertain perceived facilitators and barriers to remaining in rural practice.
    Research center: Rural and Minority Health Research Center
    Topics: Nurses and nurse practitioners, Workforce
  • Rural Nursing Workforce: Current Educational Characteristics and Options for Improvement
    This project examined the current distribution of nurses, subset by educational attainment, across the rural U.S. using data from Census Public-Use Microdata files. Then surveyed approximately 750 registered nurse to bachelor of science in nursing (RN-to-BSN) educational programs across the U.S. identifying the proportion of programs offering rural content or facilitating rural placement.
    Research center: Rural and Minority Health Research Center
    Topics: Nurses and nurse practitioners, Workforce
  • Understanding the Prescribing Practices of Rural Nurse Practitioners and Physician Assistants with a DEA Waiver to Prescribe Buprenorphine
    This study investigated the extent to which nurse practitioners and physician assistants who practice in rural areas and have a Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) waiver to prescribe buprenorphine as an office-based outpatient treatment for opioid use disorder are providing this treatment to their patients.
    Research center: WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
    Topics: Nurses and nurse practitioners, Physician assistants, Substance use and treatment

2018

2016

2015

2014

2013

  • Current Contribution of Physicians, Advanced Practice Nurses, and Physician Assistants to the Rural Primary Care Workforce
    This two-year, multi-state study is examining the practices of rural physicians, nurse practitioners (NPs), and physician assistants (PAs) regarding their primary care visit productivity and scope of practice. Through surveys, this study will examine the contributions of physicians, NPs, and PAs by state, degree of practice rurality, practice characteristics, and primary care HPSA status in order to provide information on a range of rural primary care workforce needs.
    Research center: WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
    Topics: Nurses and nurse practitioners, Physician assistants, Physicians, Workforce

2012

  • Factors Associated with Rural-Residing Registered Nurses' Choices to Work in Urban Locations and Larger Rural Cities
    While larger numbers of registered nurses (RNs) are living in rural areas, research from the WWAMI RHRC shows that since 1980, a growing percentage are commuting from rural residences to work within urban and larger rural cities. This study will explore factors that may be associated with RNs' decisions to commute away from their rural areas of residence to work in less rural areas.
    Research center: WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
    Topics: Nurses and nurse practitioners, Physician assistants, Workforce

2008

2004

  • State of Rural Health Provider Organizations and Health Professional Shortages
    This study addresses the convergence of health professions shortages and financial limitations among rural hospitals and rural home health providers. Successful strategies or best practices implemented in rural areas to address the shortages will be identified.
    Research center: Southwest Rural Health Research Center
    Topics: Allied health professionals, Home health, Nurses and nurse practitioners, Workforce

2003