Explaining the difference in Hospitals by Location
I have posted about rural hospitals here, here, and here. Resources found at various hospitals can be defined by location. Rural hospitals may have less resource and capability than urban hospitals plus greater costs. Resources may be less due to cost which does not change but has a larger impact on a rural hospital due to patient usage. The cost is not spread across greater usage. Usage has to cover costs or the smaller hospital is in danger of being closed. In which case people are forced to travel farther for care.
Defining Rural Hospitals
A hospital is described as a “rural hospital” if it is located in an area that is classified as rural by the Health Resources and Services Administration. Based on the revised definition established in 2021, an area is rural if . . .
(1) it is in a county classified as “non-metropolitan” by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB); or
(2) it is in a county classified as “metropolitan” and is either (a) in a census tract with a Rural-Urban Commuting Area (RUCA) Code of 4.0 or higher, or (b) in a census tract with a RUCA Code of 2 or 3 that is at least 400 square miles in area and has a population density of 35 persons per square mile or less, or
(3) it is in a county classified as “metropolitan” that does not contain any urbanized area (which is defined by the U.S. Census Bureau as an incorporated place with 2,500 or more residents).
There are two very different types of hospitals in the U.S: (1) small rural hospitals, and (2) urban and large rural hospitals. There are over 1,000 small rural hospitals, representing nearly one-fourth of all the short-term general hospitals in the country. In contrast, they receive only 2% of total national hospital spending.
Small rural hospitals provide most or all of the healthcare services in the small communities they serve. Small rural hospitals deliver not only traditional hospital services such as emergency care, inpatient care, and laboratory testing. Most of them also deliver rehabilitation, long-term care, and primary care. The majority of the communities they serve are at least a half-hour drive from the nearest alternative hospital. Many small communities have no alternate sources of healthcare.
Small rural hospitals struggle to survive and rural communities experience harm from the loss of them. The majority of small rural hospitals are losing money delivering patient services. More than 100 rural hospitals closed in the past decade of which most were small hospitals. In most cases, the closure of the hospital resulted in the loss of both the emergency department and other outpatient services. Residents of the community then travel farther when they have an emergency or need other healthcare services. This increases the risk of death or disability when accidents or serious medical conditions occur. The closures also increase the risk of undiagnosed health problems or inadequate treatment due to a lack of access to care.
Residents of urban areas can also be harmed by rural hospital closures. Most of the nation’s food supply and energy production comes from rural communities. Farms, ranches, mines, drilling sites, wind farms, and solar energy facilities cannot function without an adequate, healthy workforce. People are less likely to live or work in rural communities without access to an emergency department and other healthcare services. Many popular recreation, historical, and tourist sites are located in rural areas, and visitors to those sites need access to emergency services if they have an accident or medical emergency.
” The Importance of Rural Hospitals – Saving Rural Hospitals,” chqpr.org. Defining the Differences.