Image by Let Ideas Compete via Flickr
Journalists from around the country converged on Fort Worth, Texas, this summer to enhance their reporting skills at AHCJ’s eighth Rural Health Journalism Workshop.
Among them was Susan Heavey, AHCJ’s topic leader on health disparities and the social determinants of health care. In a new tip sheet, Susan notes that rural communities face special challenges in attracting and retaining providers, and in keeping hospitals and other critical care facilities open. One surprising trend: Many military veterans – some suffering from depression and post-traumatic stress disorder – often settle in rural communities after their service, putting stress on already limited mental health care resources.
For her tip sheet, Susan combed the best from the one-day workshop’s panels by health care and policy experts who focus on the medical challenges of rural areas. She also highlights some subsequent stories that have been written by attendees.