While rural communities have complex challenges to implementation that are not found in more urban areas, many agencies and providers have been able to overcome these barriers to successfully implement new programs. Behavioral health care has been limited by availability, accessibility and acceptability in rural communities. Availability is defined as having a sufficient number of qualified providers and services to meet the community’s needs. Accessibility is defined as being able to reach the available services or providers. In rural areas, distance is often a factor in access, with the large geographical areas leading to a physical separation from service providers as well as social and cultural isolation and acceptability is defined here as the willingness of consumers to use services. Stigma about receiving behavioral health or social services is, unfortunately, common in many communities. Implementing Evidence-Based Practices in Rural Areas is a brief developed by the Challenges & Strategies developed by the California Evidence Based Clearinghouse for Child Welfare that summarizes what is known about the implementation needs of rural areas and provides some strategies to address them and increase the likelihood of successful and sustained changes. The brief highlights effective strategies for rural communities to consider such as careful program selection and preparation, building partnerships, dealing with distance, and supporting staff.
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