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Southwest Rural Health Research Center

The Southwest Rural Health Research Center (SRHRC) is nationally recognized and funded by the Health Resources and Services Administration's Federal Office of Rural Health Policy. The center was established to address the needs of rural and underserved populations across Texas and the nation by bringing together a unique combination of faculty expertise in health policy, chronic disease, health economics, aging, long-term care, health law, and epidemiology and biostatistics.

Rural Healthy People 2030

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Some of the distinctive cultural, social, economic, and geographic characteristics that define rural America place rural populations at greater risk for a myriad of diseases and health challenges. It is this recognition of the unique health challenges faced by rural America that served as the impetus for our once-a-decade Rural Healthy People publications.

These publications discuss the top twenty rural health priorities for the current decade, as chosen by the people who live and work in rural areas. You’ll discover the latest research and best practices for each priority written by leading experts in the field. You’ll also find examples of community-based programs that could serve as models in reaching rural and minority populations. Rural Healthy People 2030 is available in digital and hard copy format. See links below. You can also access the previous editions from 2020 and 2010.

Rural Healthy People publications are one-of-a-kind national resources equipping health policy planners at the federal and state levels with vital information, and empowering rural leaders and health care providers with critical tools for responding effectively to the needs of the communities they serve.

 

Current Center Projects

The Unintended Consequences of Recent Court Rulings on Rural Hospitals

This study will use surveys and interviews with hospital executives to explore how they are managing Disproportionate Share Hospital-related losses, where they are making budget cuts, and how these changes affect their ability to provide services.

Alva Ferdinand, DrPH, JD

The Rural Elderly Population: Demographics, Economic Status,Health Status, and Insurance Enrollment

The U.S. population is aging, with rural areas having a higher proportion of elderly residents compared to urban ones. Project investigators will conduct a descriptive study to describe the demographics, economic status, health status, and insurance enrollment of the rural elderly population using data from nationally representative sources.

Alva Ferdinand, DrPH, JD

"Older, Sicker, Poorer": A Scoping Review of the Literature That Contributes to This Narrative on Rural Americans

Researchers have long noted the disproportionate disease and mortality burden borne by residents of rural areas of the U.S., as well as disproportionate economic opportunities to develop wealth. Moreover, researchers have highlighted rural youth migration citing factors that push residents away from the communities in which they were raised. The project team will identify and summarize the literature on the rural youth exodus, the disproportionate burden of disease in rural areas, and variations in wealth opportunities for rural Americans. Our findings will provide the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy with a comprehensive scoping review they can utilize for policy development and advocacy.

Alva Ferdinand, DrPH, JD

Assessing the Clinical and Financial Impact of Community Health Workers in Rural America

The public health field has increasingly used the social determinants of health framework to understand health access and outcomes. The use of community health workers (CHWs) has emerged as a potential model for helping to ensure that patient needs are met. Research assessing the impact that CHWs are having has often focused on a single site, hospital system, or state. By synthesizing these studies into a comprehensive scoping review, this project will allow for policymakers to better understand the extent to which CHWs improve health status and improve the bottom line for health systems in rural communities across the United States.

Alva Ferdinand, DrPH, JD

Identifying and Exploring the Settings That Nurse Practitioners and Physician Assistants Are Practicing in as Well as Trends in Specialization in These Groups

nurse and kidThere is evidence that nurse practitioners (NPs) and physician assistants (PAs) are branching into various specialties such as psychiatric, oncology, and pediatrics, but a contemporary understanding of how these specialties are represented in rural settings is missing, especially in light of evolving state scope of practice laws in the U.S. Researchers will use National Provider Identifier registry data to assess trends in specialty and settings and Medicare provider utilization and payment data to explore whether there have been significant changes in the number of clinician types billing for procedures. These findings will inform the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy on areas where the use of NPs and PAs can be enhanced.

Alva Ferdinand, DrPH, JD

Evaluating the Impact and Progress of the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy's Rural Public Health Workforce Training Network Program

nursing student checking a patient with her stethoscope

 HRSA established the Rural Public Health Workforce Training newtwork Program to expand health service capacity by supporting public health job development, training, and placement in rural adn tribal communities. In 2022, HRSA awarded over $47 million in funding through this program. This project will examine how grantees implemented the program and assess the impact of their program activities.

Alva O. Ferdinand, JD, DrPH

Other SRHRC Programs

 

Texas Cancer Screening, Training, Education, and Prevention (C-STEP)

The Texas Cancer Screening, Training, Education and Prevention Program, or  Texas C-STEP, is conducted through the  Texas A&M Health Family Care. Texas C-STEP provides critical safety-net services, such as cancer screenings and certain advanced diagnostics, to uninsured, underserved, and low-income Texans.

Texas C-STEP is funded by grants from the  Cancer Prevention & Research Institute of Texas. These grants provide much needed access to cervical, breast, colorectal, lung, and liver cancer screenings, while also increasing screening capacity and providing training opportunities for resident physicians and nursing students. 

Certified community health workers provide culturally-appropriate outreach, education and navigation services for these grants.