We’re proud to share that Health Commons at Pond has once again received a Gold Rating—the highest honor awarded by the National Association of Free and Charitable Clinics—for the second consecutive year. #GTNI #CommunityNursing #HealthCommonsAtPond

Congratulations to Shantelle Smith, GTNI affiliate faculty member, on accepting a probationary position with the School of Nursing! We’re grateful for her commitment to family & societal nursing & look forward to her continued impact.
#FamilyNursing #NursingEducation #AffiliateFaculty #GTNI

A state-of-the-art review of community-based palliative care services in rural areas of Southern Minnesota and the United States | International Journal of Palliative Nursing Background: This state-of-the-art (SOTA) review aimed to understand the historical, current and future of rural community palliative care services (PCS) with a primary focus in rural southern Minnesota communities and the United States. Methods: This review followed the six step SOTA systematic review process described by Barry et al (2022) and examined articles from 2010–2023 regarding rural PCS. Results: Historical and current research consistently supported the benefits of PCS and reported the top facilitators as a clear definition of palliative care and PCS. The top barriers included a lack service provision, funding/resources, national policies/regulation, and shortages of trained providers in rural communities. Conclusions: Barriers to the provision of PCS have not improved based on this review in rural areas and must be addressed to reduce healthcare disparities for rural populations.

The takeaway: access to palliative care in rural communities remains deeply unequal, and addressing these gaps is critical to improving outcomes and quality of life.
#GTNI #PalliativeCare #RuralHealth #HealthEquity #NursingResearch #MSUMankato #FamilyNursing #EndOfLifeCare #HealthcareAccess