Improving health and achieving health equity through access to quality services is a formidable challenge in rural America. The health of rural communities depends upon access to a well-trained and committed health care workforce, especially in primary care. Preparing, recruiting, and retaining health care professionals for complex, sometimes resource-limited, rural settings is necessary for quality care in often underserved rural communities.
We have practiced in rural communities and take this challenge personally. We embrace these communities as our own and are therefore deeply invested in their health and success.
Rural PREP builds the capacity of health professional education and training institutions to prepare rural primary care practitioners. We do this by conducting research and disseminating evidence-based practices from our own research and that of others. We engage our community of practice for mutual learning, sharing research findings and evidence-based practices, as well as improving the quality of research on rural health professional education.
All of our efforts are aimed at strengthening the provision of quality rural primary care by increasing the number of individuals enrolling in and completing rural primary care health professions training, and transitioning to primary care practice in rural communities. With a strong workforce foundation, we envision a rural America with access to high-quality, comprehensive primary care.