Children in rural areas are more likely to face different challenges to their health and heave less access to care when compared with children in other areas, according to a new report from the federal Health Resources and Services Administration.
"The National Survey of Children's Health (NSCH): The Health and Well-Being of Children in Rural Areas: A Portrait of the Nation in 2007," which is published every four years, examined the overall health of rural children in the United States from birth to age 17. The report finds greater prevalence of certain physical, emotional, behavioral and developmental conditions in rural areas.
Among the findings, children living in rural areas are more likely to have public insurance, such as Medicaid or the Children's Health Insurance Program, while urban children are more likely to be privately insured.
In addition, the percentage of children with chronic conditions such as obesity, asthma and diabetes is highest among teenagers living in small rural areas.
"This national survey demonstrates how children in rural areas face particular health risks," HRSA Administrator Mary Wakefield, RN, PhD, said in a news release. "Using the information provided by parents about their children will give public health officials a more complete picture for how to improve these children's health outcomes. HRSA's programs in rural health policy, maternal and child health and across the agency will look to these findings to inform our work going forward."
Based on a national survey of parents, the report presents information on children's health status, and their access to and use of healthcare services as measured through their parents' reports. It considers children's body mass index, social skills and behaviors and the presence of one or more chronic conditions. Aspects of the environment that were assessed in the survey include family structure, poverty level, parental health and well-being and community surroundings.
The National Survey of Children's Health is sponsored by HRSA's Maternal and Child Health Bureau. Technical appendices at the end of the book present information about the survey methodology and sample. To see more in-depth information about the book and its findings, visit http://mchb.hrsa.gov/nsch/07rural.
"The National Survey of Children's Health (NSCH): The Health and Well-Being of Children in Rural Areas: A Portrait of the Nation in 2007," which is published every four years, examined the overall health of rural children in the United States from birth to age 17. The report finds greater prevalence of certain physical, emotional, behavioral and developmental conditions in rural areas.
Among the findings, children living in rural areas are more likely to have public insurance, such as Medicaid or the Children's Health Insurance Program, while urban children are more likely to be privately insured.
In addition, the percentage of children with chronic conditions such as obesity, asthma and diabetes is highest among teenagers living in small rural areas.
"This national survey demonstrates how children in rural areas face particular health risks," HRSA Administrator Mary Wakefield, RN, PhD, said in a news release. "Using the information provided by parents about their children will give public health officials a more complete picture for how to improve these children's health outcomes. HRSA's programs in rural health policy, maternal and child health and across the agency will look to these findings to inform our work going forward."
Based on a national survey of parents, the report presents information on children's health status, and their access to and use of healthcare services as measured through their parents' reports. It considers children's body mass index, social skills and behaviors and the presence of one or more chronic conditions. Aspects of the environment that were assessed in the survey include family structure, poverty level, parental health and well-being and community surroundings.
The National Survey of Children's Health is sponsored by HRSA's Maternal and Child Health Bureau. Technical appendices at the end of the book present information about the survey methodology and sample. To see more in-depth information about the book and its findings, visit http://mchb.hrsa.gov/nsch/07rural.
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