Disease Management in Rural Area

The project is in its second year of study extending the investigation and analyses conducted by the research team of Dr. Jane Bolin, Dr. Miguel Zuniga, and Dr. Larry Gamm during 2001-2002. The overall goal of the rural diseases management project is the identification and systematic evaluation of diseases management (DM) efforts in rural areas in order to gain an understanding of rural DM efforts and the challenges faced by rural health providers. In 2001-2002, the Rural DM project team focused its attention on assessing the planning, implementation and organizational support of DM initiatives among five clinics or health plans serving large rural populations. On-site interviews were conducted at Carle Clinic, Marshfield and Scott & White Clinic, Geisinger Clinic and The Health Plan of the upper Ohio Valley. Reports on our Year-1 efforts are pending. In Year-2 of the DM study we will focus primarily on patient responses to, and outcomes of, disease management in rural areas. The research team will collaborate with 4-6 clinics or Plans that participated in the Year-1 study and possibly 1-2 other health organizations that have shown an interest in the project (such as St. Elizabeth of Hungary, New Mexico (which serves the rural uninsured), and Intermountain Health Systems of Utah). Our primary research goal is to conduct an analysis of secondary data from these sites, evaluating rural-nonrural differences and outcomes in disease management by disease, region, type of program, and by relevant and by relevant patient demographics. Additionally, in Year-2 our research team will be preparing a detailed rural DM report and case study documentation as well as reporting on the of our DM Providers Survey to be conducted during the summer of 2002. Analyses of patient level of DM data will provide comparisons between rural and nonrural patients enrolled in disease management programs. Depending upon the size and characteristics of the individual clinic/plan datasets, we will also attempt to make comparisons across other relevant patient-level indicators, including age, gender, education, marital status, time since diagnosis , race/ethnicity and region of the country.

Bolin, J.N., Gamm, L.D., Zuniga, M.A., Berger, E., and Kash, B. (Nov 2003) Survey Results of Physician, Nurses, and Leaders Providing Disease Management to Rural Populations College Station, TX: The Texas A&M University System Health Science Center, School of Rural Public Health, Southwest Rural Health Research Center.