Blue Cross Blue Shield of Florida
Center for Rural Health Research & Policy

The Center is engaged in the development or conduct of a broad range of research activities, collaborating with researchers from within the College of Medicine and across the FSU campus. Research areas all focus on improving or understanding complex health-related challenges facing rural communities.

The following represent a few of the articles published by scholars associated with the Center:

1. Saunders C, Bellamy GR, Menachemi N, Chukmaitov AS, Brooks RG. (Spring 2009) Bypassing the Local Rural Hospital for Outpatient Procedures. The Journal of Rural Health, Volume 25, Issue 2, Pages: 174-181.
    
2. Ruddick, P, Hannah, K, Schade, CP, Bellamy, G, Brehm, J, and Lomely D. (2008) Using RCA to Reduce Falls in Rural Health Care Facilities. Advances in Patient Safety: New Directions and Alternative Approaches. Volume 1, AHRQ Publication Nos. 08-0034 (1-4). July 2008. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Rockville, MD. http://www.ahrq.gov/downloads/pub/advances2/vol1/Advances-Ruddick_61.pdf.
    
3. Schade, CS, Ruddick, P, Lomely, D, and Bellamy G. (July 2008) Voluntary Adverse Event Reporting in Rural Hospitals. Advances in Patient Safety: New Directions and Alternative Approaches. Volume 1, AHRQ Publication Nos. 08-0034 (1-4). July 2008. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Rockville, MD. http://www.ahrq.gov/downloads/pub/advances2/vol1/Advances-Schade_63.pdf.
    
4. Hannah KL, Schade C, Lomely D, Ruddick P, Bellamy G. (July 2008) Hospital Administrative Staff vs. Nursing Staff Responses to the AHRQ Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture. Advances in Patient Safety: New Directions and Alternative Approaches. Volume 2, AHRQ Publication Nos. 08-0034 (1-4). July 2008. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Rockville, MD. http://www.ahrq.gov/downloads/pub/advances2/vol2/Advances-Hannah_23.pdf.
    
5. Liu J and Bellamy G. (2008) Bypass of Local Primary Care in Rural Counties: Effect of Patient and Community Characteristics. Annals of Family Medicine, 6:124-130.
    
6. Gunderson A, Menachemi N, Brummel-Smith K, Brooks RG (Summer 2006) Physicians Who Treat the Elderly in Rural Florida: Trends Indicating Concerns Regarding Access to Care. The Journal of Rural Health, Volume 22, Issue 3: 224-228
    
7. Menachemi N, Burke D, Clawson A, Brooks RG (June 2005) Information Technologies in Florida's Rural Hospitals: Does System Affiliation Matter? The Journal of Rural Health, Volume 21, Issue 3: 263-268
    
8. Menachemi N, Stine C, Clawson A, Brooks RG (2005) The changing face of access to family physician services in rural Florida. Family Medicine. Volume 37(1):54-58.
    
9. Warner A, Menachemi N, Brooks RG (March 2005) Information Technologies Relevant to Pharmacy Practice in Hospitals: Results of a Statewide Survey. Hospital Pharmacy, Volume 40(3):233-239.

Current research includes the analysis of Florida Emergency Department visits for ambulatory care sensitive conditions, to better understand whether and how rural residents differ from urban in their use of the ED for non-urgent care and what factors might explain those differences.