Perceptions of Telehealth in the United States: Are There Racial/Ethnic Differences?

: Telehealth, a beneficial and safe option for in-person medical patient visits, has the potential to significantly improve patient health outcomes. While its use increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, there is limited research on the perception of telehealth compared with in-person care among different racial and ethnic groups in the United States. We aimed to investigate the relationship between race/ethnicity and the perception that telehealth is similar to in-person care.

Examining the relationship between rural residents' satisfaction with local hospital's COVID-19 response and intention to use the hospital.

Purpose: The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the importance of having emergency and acute care services close to home and emerged as an opportunity for hospital-community engagement. This study examined whether rural residents' satisfaction with their local hospital's pandemic response was associated with improved community perception of the hospital and an intention to use it in the future.

Methods: Data for the study were obtained from a survey of rural residents of 6 Georgia rural communities and analyzed using multivariable logistic regression and mediation analyses.

A Nationwide Study of the "July Effect" Concerning Postpartum Hemorrhage and Its Risk Factors at Teaching Hospitals across the United States.

Objective To assess the "July effect" and the risk of postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) and its risk factors across the U.S. teaching hospitals.

Social ecological approach to factors influencing perinatal mental health service provision among providers in Bulloch County, GA.

Perinatal mental illness pertains to pregnancy-related mental health complications, which could last as long as one year post-delivery. Despite the high prevalence of PMI, there remains a poor accessibility and utilization of mental health services, especially in the rural America. Hence, using the Social Ecological Model (SEM), we aim to identify factors influencing perinatal mental health service provision among providers in Bulloch County, GA.

Hospital Characteristics and Other Factors Associated with the Risk of Postpartum Hemorrhage in the United States.

Postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) is one of the leading causes of maternal morbidity and mortality in the United States. It occurs when blood loss exceeds 1000mL regardless of the delivery route. Careful assessment of various causes and risk factors of PPH is essential to reduce and prevent further complications, avoid maternal morbidity and mortality, and better manage PPH.

Examining Factors Associated With Minority Turnover Intention in State and Local Public Health Organizations: The Moderating Role of Race in the Relationship Among Supervisory Support, Job Satisfaction, and Turnover Intention.

Context: There is a need to understand minority governmental public health workforce turnover to ensure the retention of public health minority workers, capitalize on diversity benefits, and enhance public health's capacity to serve diverse populations.

Objective: This study assesses the moderating effect of minority health workers' race on (1) the relationship between the workforce environment, particularly employees' perceptions of their pay and supervisory support on job satisfaction, and (2) the relationship between job satisfaction and turnover intentions.

Design: Using the 2017 Public Health Workforce Interests and Needs Survey (PH WINS), a cross-sectional survey of the public health workforce, a hierarchical logistic regression modeling technique was used to assess the moderating role of race on the relationship between supervisory support, pay and job satisfaction, and turnover intentions.

State Expectations and Medicaid Managed Care Organizations' Efforts to Address the Social Needs of Medicaid Enrollees.

Existing work on states' efforts to address the social needs of Medicaid enrollees indicate the implementation of several state-level strategies to move Medicaid Managed Care Organizations (MMCOs) toward the provision of whole-person care. However, less is known about how these expectations drive MMCOs' SDOH efforts. To address this gap, we interviewed representatives of eight MMCOs (=28) and 12 state Medicaid offices (=17).

Factors associated with cost conversations in oral health care settings.

Background: Patient-provider cost conversations can minimize cost-related barriers to health, while improving treatment adherence and patient satisfaction. The authors sought to identify factors associated with the occurrence of cost conversations in dentistry.

Methods: This was a cross-sectional study using data from an online, self-administered survey of US adults who had seen a dentist within the past 24 months at the time of the survey.

COVID-19 and social determinants of health: Medicaid managed care organizations' experiences with addressing member social needs.

Background: The significant adverse social and economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has cast broader light on the importance of addressing social determinants of health (SDOH). Medicaid Managed Care Organizations (MMCOs) have increasingly taken on a leadership role in integrating medical and social services for Medicaid members. However, the experiences of MMCOs in addressing member social needs during the pandemic has not yet been examined.

A moderated moderation analysis of perceived adaptivity and organizational support for innovation in the relationship between role overload and emotional exhaustion.

Background: Collectively, an individual's ability and willingness to adjust to uncertain and complex changes in the workplace and an environment that supports employee problem-solving may facilitate individual-level adaptation to changes in the workplace and help mitigate the negative impact of work-related stressors on health care professionals' work-related behavior and mental health outcomes.

Purpose: This study uses an interactionist perspective to assess how resources such as perceived adaptivity and organizational support for innovation serve as contextual boundary conditions of role overload in mitigating emotional exhaustion among health care workers.

Methodology: A cross-sectional survey design was used to collect data from rural health care workers (n = 310).

Addressing the Social Needs of Medicaid Enrollees Through Managed Care: Lessons and Promising Practices from the Field.

With growing recognition of the adverse health impacts of unmet social needs, Medicaid managed care organizations (MMCOs) are increasingly focusing on addressing the social needs of Medicaid enrollees as part of a holistic approach to care. Information and knowledge sharing among MMCOs pertaining to lessons learned and promising practices from their social determinants of health (SDOH) targeted efforts can help identify successful practical approaches for navigating common challenges, developing robust SDOH programming, and effectively delivering whole-person care. Using data from interviews with 28 representatives of 8 national and regional MMCOs, this qualitative study describes the perspectives of MMCO representatives on the lessons learned and emerging promising practices from addressing SDOH among their Medicaid enrollees.

Assessment of the Financial Health of Rural Hospitals After Implementation of the Georgia Rural Hospital Tax Credit Program.

Importance: In 2016, Georgia implemented the Rural Hospital Tax Credit Program, which allows taxpayers to receive a tax credit for contributions to qualifying rural hospitals in the state. Empirical evidence of the program's association with the viability of the state's rural hospitals is needed.

Objective: To examine the association of the tax credit program with the financial health of participating rural hospitals.

Assessing Public Health Workforce Informatics Competencies: A Study of 3 District Health Departments in Georgia.

Context: Despite the increased recognition of the importance of having informatics-competent public health professionals, the competency level of the public health workforce in public health informatics (PHI) has not been examined extensively in the literature.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to assess public health workforce informatics competencies in select Georgia health districts and determine the correlates of PHI proficiency.

Methods: This study is based on a cross-sectional quantitative study design.

The impact of interpersonal support, supervisory support, and employee engagement on employee turnover intentions: Differences between financially distressed and highly financially distressed hospitals.

Background: Critical access hospitals (CAHs) are small hospitals in rural communities in the United States. Because of changes in rural population demographics, legacy financial obligations, and/or structural issues in the U.S.

Georgia Rural Hospital Tax Credit: Perspectives of Rural Health Executives.

Purpose: In 2016, Georgia implemented a rural hospital tax credit program through a legislative mandate that allows individuals and corporations to donate to qualifying rural hospitals in exchange for state income tax credit. The study examines the importance, success, and challenges of the program, and opportunities for improvement, from the perspective of Georgia rural hospital executives.

Methods: The study was a qualitative study using data from key informant telephone interviews with 21 hospital executives and administrators of eligible rural hospitals.

Examining the relationship between social media engagement and hospital revenue.

Effective use of social media by hospitals has the potential to improve hospitals' financial performance by facilitating customer service and providing hospitals with a low-cost marketing platform. This cross-sectional study explored the relationship between hospital Facebook engagement and patient revenue in a simple random sample of United States short-term acute care hospitals. There was a positive relationship between Facebook engagement and hospital patient revenue for rural hospitals, but not for urban hospitals.

Blood pressure control, glycemic control, and dyslipidemia among healthy adults in the Cape Coast metropolis, Ghana.

Background: The World Health Organization recommends the implementation of interventions focused on the early detection of clinical risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD) as effective strategies for the control of CVD in low resource settings. However, due to health system resource constraints, surveillance capacity for the identification of high-risk populations for non-communicable diseases, including CVD have been inadequate. The purpose of this study was to describe the prevalence of CVD clinical risk factors among healthy adults residing in the Cape Coast metropolis of Ghana.

Defining "Community" from the Perspectives of Individuals with Sickle Cell Disease in Rural Georgia.

Individuals with sickle cell disease (SCD) often struggle to transition from pediatric to adult-centered medical environments. One probable cause is that many transition programs do not focus on what happens when patients leave the medical environment and return to their communities. Little is known about how individuals with SCD define community.

Diabetes in the Cape Coast metropolis of Ghana: an assessment of risk factors, nutritional practices and lifestyle changes.

Background: Despite the significant increase in the incidence of diabetes in Ghana, research in this area has been lagging. The purpose of the study was to assess the risk factors associated with diabetes in the Cape Coast metropolis of Ghana, and to describe nutritional practices and efforts toward lifestyle change.

Methods: A convenient sample of 482 adults from the Cape Coast metropolis was surveyed using a self-reported questionnaire.

Disparities in Emergency Department Wait Time Among Patients with Mental Health and Substance-Related Disorders.

This study examined disparities in emergency department (ED) wait time for patients with mental health and substance-related disorders (PwMHSDs), using data from the 2009-2011 National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NHAMCS). Wait time was defined as the time between arrival at ED and being seen by an ED provider. Results from multivariable regression models show racial disparities, with non-Hispanic Black PwMHSDs experiencing longer ED wait time, compared to non-Hispanic White PwMHSDs.

Temporal Trends and Rural-Urban Differences in Hospital Length of Stay for Alzheimer Disease and Related Disorders.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to assess rural-urban differences and temporal trends in length of inpatient stay among patients diagnosed with Alzheimer disease and related dementia (ADRD).

Materials And Methods: The study sample comprised 27,313 ADRD and 27,313 matched non-ADRD inpatient discharges from Nebraska hospitals from 2005 to 2011. Descriptive statistics and multivariable regression models were used to assess rural-urban variations and temporal trends in length of stay (LOS).