| Title: |
Small but Essential: Understanding Rural Public Health Workforce Challenges and Strengths From the 2024 Public Health Workforce Interests and Needs Survey |
| Authors: |
Balio, Casey P.; Mathis, Stephanie M.; Meit, Michael B.; Bekemeier, Betty |
| Source: |
Journal of Public Health Management & Practice ; volume 32, issue 1S, page S60-S67 ; ISSN 1078-4659 1550-5022 |
| Publisher Information: |
Ovid Technologies (Wolters Kluwer Health) |
| Publication Year: |
2025 |
| Description: |
Objective: Describe key characteristics of the rural local public health workforce on a national level, including in comparison to both the overall and urban local public health workforce. Design: Cross-sectional analysis of the 2024 Public Health Workforce Interests and Needs Survey (PH WINS) data. Setting: Local health departments (LHDs) serving rural and urban jurisdictions across the United States. Participants: The study sample included 172 679 weighted responses from individuals working in LHDs, and 33 214 of them were from rural-serving LHDs. Main Outcome Measures: Descriptive and bivariate statistics for measures across 4 areas, both overall and by rurality: demographic characteristics, educational background, position information, and intentions to stay or leave. Results: Greater portions of the rural local public health workforce were female and White relative to their urban counterparts. Compared to the urban workforce, the portions of the rural workforce without a public health degree and with clinical training were both greater. Tenure in position, agency, and public health practice also differed by rurality, with 19.6% of the rural workforce reporting the greatest tenure in public health practice (21 years or above) compared to 17.8% of the urban workforce. Intentions to stay, leave, or retire also differed by rurality, with 15.4% of the rural workforce reporting intentions to leave in the next year for reasons outside of retirement, compared to 21.6% of the urban workforce. Conclusions: Characteristics of the local public health workforce vary by rurality, extending prior research demonstrating differences between rural- and urban-serving LHDs across the nation. Findings should guide rural-focused strategies aimed at strengthening and sustaining the public health workforce. |
| Document Type: |
article in journal/newspaper |
| Language: |
English |
| DOI: |
10.1097/phh.0000000000002233 |
| DOI: |
10.1097/PHH.0000000000002233 |
| Availability: |
https://doi.org/10.1097/phh.0000000000002233; https://journals.lww.com/10.1097/PHH.0000000000002233 |
| Rights: |
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ |
| Accession Number: |
edsbas.CAC67486 |
| Database: |
BASE |