Rural

Food insecurity has major ramifications on an individual’s health, causing increased rates of diabetes, heart disease, obesity and mental health disorders. Recent research shows that low food security is much higher among cancer survivors and their caregivers, causing greater cancer-related challenges such as decreased quality of life, depression, medication nonadherence and cancer progression. To help address this disparity, the American Cancer Society recently released a food security toolkit to assist comprehensive cancer control coalitions in their efforts to address food security among cancer survivors.

ChangeLab Solutions recently expanded their suite of resources dedicated to advancing rural prosperity by adding a strategy brief on advancing racial equity and a policy table that can assist in these changes. These resources are a part of the Toward Better Rural Futures project which focuses on equipping leaders with the tools necessary to ensure that their community can thrive. These two new publications include tools for local and state policymakers, community leaders, and changemakers in rural areas to make a lasting impact through policy changes that can raise the bar for everyone.

A recent report released by the Truth Initiative highlights the reasons behind the higher smoking prevalence among several southern and midwestern states. This report also emphasized the importance of adopting strong commercial tobacco policies to decrease commercial tobacco usage and secondhand smoke exposure in these areas.

The Aspen Institute Community Strategies Group (Aspen CSG) recently released a Call to Action as a response from their Thrive Rural Action-Learning Exchange (TRALE) where they sought to answer the question, “What will it take for outdoor recreation economies to grow equitable rural prosperity?” They found that there are five principles for creating equitable and thriving rural outdoor recreation economies.

Last month the Geographic Health Equity Alliance and one of CADCA’s Master Trainers, Dylan Ellerbee, partnered to host a one-day, in- person training workshop for the Eliminate Tobacco Use Virginia Summit. The Eliminate Tobacco Use Initiative is a nationwide initiative to address tobacco use across colleges and universities.

The Center on Rural Innovation (CORI) started a project funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Thrive Rural Initiative meant to leverage data to shift the public’s view of rural America. CORI has partnered with MDC, an organization that collects economic and demographic data across the South, to publish narratives and data visualizations that create a more accurate portrayal of rural communities.

Some key components of comprehensive cancer control plans include the development of goals, objectives and strategies to address the cancer burden within the state, tribal organization or territory. These goals, objectives and strategies can help spur collaboration between partners. During a webinar from the Geographic Health Equity Alliance in partnership with the Advancing Cancer and Rural Equity (ACRE) lab, three presenters discussed different ways in which evidence-based strategies have been implemented to improve cancer screening in rural areas.

It is a common trope in business, healthcare and many other sectors—to be effective in our work, we cannot be confined to silos. While it may be a cliché, it is also true! Collaboration is key to success in any endeavor. This is particularly true in reducing rural health inequities. As we recognize National Rural Health Day on Thursday, November 17, 2022, we know that collaboration—not working in silos—will advance cancer and rural equity.

GHEA and the University of Iowa’s Advancing Cancer and Rural Equity Lab hosted "Identifying and Implementing Evidence-Based Strategies in Comprehensive Cancer Control Planning" on October 26, 2022. This webinar highlighted examples of evidence-based strategies for cancer control and how these have been effectively implemented in rural communities, organizations and clinical settings. Watch the recording today!

GHEA and the University of Iowa’s Advancing Cancer and Rural Equity Lab hosted "Setting Rural-Focused Goals and Strategies in Comprehensive Cancer Control Planning" on September 22, 2022. This webinar provided best practices for developing goals, objectives, and strategies that address both the unique challenges and strengths of rural communities. 

GHEA and the University of Iowa’s Advancing Cancer and Rural Equity Lab hosted "Building Rural-Focused Partnerships in Comprehensive Cancer Control Planning" on August 16, 2022. This webinar discussed how to build partnerships with rural partners to support rural cancer control and highlighted state plans and consortia who have ensured rural voices are at the table.

With summer in full swing, the Geographic Health Equity Alliance (GHEA) is highlighting two exciting webinar series that we don’t want you to miss out on. We invite you to join us for our upcoming tobacco- and cancer- prevention and control webinars and watch the recordings of the archived webinars.