In resource-poor countries, substantial sums of money from governments and international donors are used to purchase equipment for health facilities. WHO estimates that 50-80% of such equipment remains non-functional. This article is based on experience from various projects in developing countries in Asia and Africa. The key issues in the purchase, distribution, installation, management and ma...

Rural hospitals continue to face the threat of closure. Congress passed legislation in 1989 and 1990 to offer an alternative for small rural hospitals; the legislation encourages hospitals to form networks comprising an essential access community hospital (EACH) and one or more rural primary care hospitals. This legislation is a tightly focused program that will affect no more than an estimated...

INTRODUCTION A pilot project in shared mental health care was initiated to explore opportunities to increase the capacity of the rural primary care system as a resource for older people with mental health needs. This was done within a framework for the delivery of best practices in geriatric mental health outreach. METHODS Shared-care strategies combining education and clinical consultation b...

One commonly discussed benefit of broadband access in rural America is the potential for telemedicine visits that allow rural residents to take advantage of urbanized medical services. While the primary benefit of telemedicine is often viewed as improved health care access, the availability of these services also offers significant economic contributions to the local community. Site visits to 2...

INTRODUCTION The proliferation of professional palliative care services in recent years has increased access for people with palliative care needs; however, gaps in services continue to exist, particularly in rural and remote areas of Australia. In order to address one gap in rural health service delivery, the Support, Education, Assessment, and Monitoring (SEAM) Service for regional and rural ...

The quality of surgical care in rural hospitals is important, as surgery remains a critical component of rural health care systems. Current models for surgical quality assessment and improvement largely reflect the characteristics of larger urban hospital settings, which include proximity to other providers for peer review, higher procedure volumes to accurately assess outcomes, and greater fin...

Hospital closures occur from time to time. These closures affect not only the patients that depend on the hospitals but also the economy in many rural areas. Many factors come into play when a hospital decides to shut off services. Although influencing reasons may vary, hospital closures are likely to be caused by financial shortfalls. In the USA recently, several rural hospitals have closed an...

Majority of the Nigerian population lives in rural area, where agriculture is the mainstay. Nigerian rural areas are the most neglected and its people, the most deprived with regard to the provision of modern health care services. Besides, they lack other basic infrastructural necessary for the maintenance and promotion of good health. The implication is that rural dwellers are subjected to hig...

Health care access issues present significant challenges for rural populations and health providers. Psychology can support improved access and quality of rural health services through the development of integrated behavior health programs within primary care settings. This article reviews a clinical training and service delivery program, the Rural Hawai’i Behavioral Health Program, which has e...