# RURAL: Risk Underlying Rural Areas Longitudinal Cohort Study

> **NIH NIH U01** · BOSTON UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CAMPUS · 2021 · $49,779

## Abstract

ABSTRACT
Historically, rural communities have been difficult to study compared to their urban counterparts. This can be
attributed to them feeling marginalized from economic growth and technological advances, as they witness
the closure of rural hospitals, churches, and schools. Reaching and recruiting the rural vulnerable people in
the Appalachia and Mississippi Delta
(AMD) regions is challenged by their remote locations, worsened by a digital divide, a potential mistrust of
outsiders, a paradoxical high self-rated health, their skeptical view of medical tests, and a hesitancy to
prioritize time solely for research. To further examine these challenges, the aims of this study is to 1) identify
the facilitators and barriers to participation in research in rural communities by comparing and contrasting the
community engagement practices of the Mississippi core of the rural study with principles of community
engagement. 2) document the reach and effectiveness of community engagement activities implemented to
date by the Mississippi core of the RURAL Study using the re-aim (reach, effectiveness, adoption,
implementation, maintenance) framework. Documenting features of the Mississippi counties and approaches
used to contribute to the successes to date will enable the Mississippi core to use the results to continue
community engagement throughout the six-year cycle of the RURAL Study. Documentation of successful
strategies and lessons learned by the Mississippi core during year one of the study may provide guidance
for Louisiana and Kentucky which will be ready to escalate their presence in their respective communities
during project years three and four. The publication anticipated, as a result of this proposed research, may
also benefit investigators of similar studies who are seeking approaches for research participation with
populations in rural communities.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10250651
- **Project number:** 3U01HL146382-02S3
- **Recipient organization:** BOSTON UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CAMPUS
- **Principal Investigator:** Suzanne E Judd
- **Activity code:** U01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $49,779
- **Award type:** 3
- **Project period:** 2021-02-19 → 2025-04-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10250651

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10250651, RURAL: Risk Underlying Rural Areas Longitudinal Cohort Study (3U01HL146382-02S3). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-29 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10250651. Licensed CC0.

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