COVID-19 Treatment and Prevention in Rural and Underserved Communities: Integrating the Latest Guidance and Evidence Into Practice

Target Audience

This activity is designed specifically for primary care clinicians, registered nurses, and advanced practice registered nurses who care for patients from rural and underserved areas.

Program Overview

Throughout the pandemic, rural and underserved communities have been dramatically affected by COVID-19. Long-standing healthcare and social disparities have put some rural residents at increased risk for contracting COVID-19 or developing severe illness. In addition, clinician shortages, scarcity of resources, and longer travel times to access healthcare contribute to the ongoing challenges of managing the disease in rural areas. In this activity, expert faculty will review current guideline recommendations for vaccination and the latest clinical evidence surrounding available treatment options for COVID-19. Strategies for addressing COVID-19 barriers and disparities in rural and underserved settings will also be discussed.

This enduring activity is a recorded session from Rural Health Clinical Congress Spring 2022 that took place on May 21, 2022.

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this activity, participants should be better able to:

• Integrate available therapies for patients with COVID-19 in the inpatient and outpatient settings
• Explain the potential impact of novel variants of SARS-CoV-2 on transmissibility, mortality, and treatment efficacy
• Examine the latest clinical and real-world evidence on current and emerging vaccines for COVID-19
• Employ multidisciplinary strategies to overcome challenges to treatment and prevention of COVID-19 in rural and underserved settings