MUSM Clinical Faculty Development Series

Describe how competing definitions of “rural” — county-based (Georgia legislative, OMB, USDA RUCC, NCHS) and sub-county (Census percent-rural, RUCA) — classify Georgia communities differently, and explain how that choice changes the size of a reported rural–urban health disparity. Interpret county-level indicators from the Georgia Rural Health Chartbook to characterize the health status, health behaviors, and social conditions of a rural Georgia community, including the limits of a single rural-versus-non-rural comparison. Differentiate community types within rural Georgia by their structural characteristics — population scale, economic base, obstetric and primary care capacity, migration — and compare the magnitude of between-type variation with the magnitude of the rural–urban difference.