Understanding the impacts of rural hospital closures: A scoping review.
Cody Lendon MullensJ Andres HernandezJeevan MurthySteph HendrenWhitney E ZahndAndrew M IbrahimJohn W ScottPublished in: The Journal of rural health : official journal of the American Rural Health Association and the National Rural Health Care Association (2023)
Given the significant heterogeneity within our findings across multiple domains of impact, we advocate for a tailored approach to mitigating the impacts of rural hospital closures for policymakers. We also discuss crucial knowledge gaps in the evidence base-especially with respect to quality measures beyond mortality. The synthesis of these findings will permit policymakers and researchers to understand, and mitigate, the harms of rural hospital closure.