Thursday, November 17, 2022

On Rural Health Day, a fresh report and a look at some of the people working to build healthier rural communities

Today is National Rural Health Day, complete with a presidential proclamation and a fresh National Healthcare Quality and Disparities Report from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

The Community Strategies Group of The Aspen Institute is using the observance as an opportunity to remind us of people and organizations working for healthier rural communities.

"We know health is a central component of thriving, prosperous communities and Native nations across the rural United States, and there’s more to it than just health care," CSG says. "Whether our towns can recover from a storm, have clean water, are places where residents feel informed and connected, and the local economy works for everyone — all of this impacts our opportunity to be healthy. . . . This means we all play a role in creating opportunities for health — in rural places and across the country."

CSG notes that County Health Rankings & Roadmaps at the University of Wisconsin recently held a webinar to show how CSG's Thrive Rural Health Framework can help organizations and communities identify social and economic assets, implement strategies, and measure progress to advance rural prosperity, health, and well-being. UW also offers Rural Public Health and Health Care: A Scan of Field Practice and Trends, which asks: What are the potential pathways of influence for public health and health care to foster more prosperous, equitable, and sustainable communities across rural America?

"Across America, many rural and tribal communities are finding inspiring solutions to improve health and wellbeing for all," CSG says, noting Rural Health and Wellbeing in America, a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation presentation about "key resources, research, and emerging insights into the many factors that shape rural opportunity, health, and equity." CSG also notes its Rural Development Hubs.
"rural and regional intermediary organizations at the heart of positive community and economic development practice," with "the ability to unlock improvements in health outcomes."

CSG also notes Reproductive Healthcare: An Intersectional Component of Healthy Rural Communities, a presentation by UW's Marjory Givens on "evidence-informed solutions to the barriers to opportunity women and families continue to face in communities nationwide — particularly in lower-income rural and urban areas."

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