Focus Areas for Rural Community Health Programs - RHIhub Toolkit (2024)

FAQs

What is the main health care problem in rural areas? ›

Some rural areas have characteristics that put residents at higher risk of death, such as long travel distances to specialty and emergency care or exposures to specific environmental hazards. Rural Americans tend to have higher rates of cigarette smoking, high blood pressure, and obesity.

Health policy issues of interest for rural stakeholders include: Ensuring availability and financial viability of rural healthcare facilities, such as Critical Access Hospitals, Rural Emergency Hospitals, Federally Qualified Health Centers, and Rural Health Clinics.

The RHIhub is the nation's rural health information source. The website offers a library of resources, coverage of rural issues, state guides, evidence-based toolkits, program models and more. Customized assistance is available by phone or email.

Lack of public transportation. Poor infrastructure. Poverty and unemployment. A smaller healthcare workforce and a lack of specialty care.

Factors such as access to transportation, travel distance, and the supply of primary care providers can also limit people's ability to get primary care. For example, rural residents may need to travel long distances to get primary care and thus may be less likely to seek preventive care such as vaccinations.

Definitions of rural are often specific to particular policies and programs, but in general they must be data-driven, based on a relevant framework, align with a heuristic sense of what is rural, use consistent methodology over time, and be timely.

Rural health is the health of people living in rural areas, who generally are located farther from health care facilities and other services than people living in urban areas.

How is rural healthcare different? ›

Rural residents are also more likely to be uninsured for longer periods of time, and are less likely than urban residents to receive some types of health care, including tests for various chronic conditions.

A rural area is an open swath of land that has few homes or other buildings, and not very many people. A rural areas population density is very low. Many people live in a city, or urban area. Their homes and businesses are located very close to one another.

Innovative marketing and communication

Instead, brands should use alternate means to raise awareness, such as partnering with local communities at community events, collaborating with local governments and important opinion leaders at rural fairs, and increasing awareness through local media channels.

Delaying Care

Rural patients must often travel farther for their care and are reluctant to take time off from work. As a result, rural patients often delay seeking care, which can lead to a more complex illness and a sicker patient.

Rural areas offer fewer opportunities for working spouses, and schools in rural communities may have fewer resources. Young doctors also may worry that they will earn less, which is a serious concern for those with major student debt.

The shortage of health care providers in rural areas exacerbates rural health disparities. Only 12% of physicians practice in rural communities, and the majority of areas deemed “health professional shortage areas” by the federal government—61 percent—are located in rural areas.

Health Professions Workforce Shortage

Primary care physicians in rural areas often do not have the support of sub-specialists, hospitalists, or emergency physicians, and thus treat a wider range of conditions with limited access to sophisticated technology.

Often rural residents lack insurance coverage, which is associated with less access to care and increased risk of poor health outcomes.

In the U.S., people living in rural communities have higher rates of chronic disease and suicide, worse maternal health, and limited access to care compared to adults in cities.