Rural and Remote Health is an open-access international academic journal serving rural and remote communities and publishing articles by rural health practitioners, educators, researchers and policy makers.

This exploratory study presents self-reported dietary supplement use among peri-menopausal women in rural Hawai’i. Regular use of supplements was notably higher in this population compared with results reported in communities in other nations and different geographic regions of the US. As the majority of respondents reported receiving supplement information from a clinician, healthcare providers are encouraged to engage in thoughtful discussion with their patients regarding supplement use.

This cross-sectional study examines the impacts of health promotion workshops led by a multidisciplinary student team. Results suggest these workshops are associated with positive gains in health knowledge by participants, and satisfaction by partnering agencies. Further development of similar initiatives may prove useful in extending health literacy in rural communities.

Rural doctors practising in resource-limited settings display courage when they are required to work at the limits of their scope of practice to provide the medical care that is required by their community. Although courage can be an integral part of clinical practice, the underlying attributes of clinical courage are not well described in the literature. This Original Research article contributes to the study of clinical courage in rural doctors by reporting on testing of a recently developed questionnaire. Better understanding of clinical courage may contribute to training, support and retention strategies for rural healthcare professionals.

Research on caring for children with disabilities in sub-Saharan African contexts has primarily focused on female caregivers, leaving male caregivers understudied. This Original Research article reports on a study exploring the journeys of male caregivers in rural Kenya as they navigate the complex landscape of health care for their children with disabilities. The authors uncover valuable lessons that can inform the development of better support services and make a positive impact on the lives of children with disabilities in rural settings by improving access to quality health care.

South Africa has a history of mental health care provided primarily at tertiary level in institutions. However, in line with World Health Organization guidance, attempts have been made to decentralise and streamline the integration of public mental health care into general health care systems at primary and secondary levels. The currently implemented Mental Health Care Act 17 of 2002 serves as the national guideline to implement policy into practice, thereby increasing access and the quality of care to service users. This, of course, has implications for the roles workers and facilities are now called upon to play. This Original Research article presents data from a project that investigated issues regarding access and provision of mental health care in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. The authors studied the experiences of public health care workers at PHC clinics and the associated referral hospitals, focusing mainly on exploring their views on the ability and readiness for access to and provision of mental health care to state health service users in the area.

A lack of appropriate and sustainable resources (including workforce and supplies), inadequate infrastructure (including unreliable internet connectivity) and lack of funding and governance impact the sustainability and feasibility of healthcare delivery in isolated areas. A telehealth model or mobile model of care may be most appropriate for these isolated regions but, paradoxically, these regions are the least likely to have infrastructure and resources to support the model. This Original Research article reports on the results of a needs assessment of healthcare services in Far East Gippsland, Victoria, Australia, and outlines feasible and sustainable services as suggested by the people that live there.

The KidsFirst North program is a maternal–child health support program in rural northern Saskatchewan, Canada. The program serves both Indigenous and non-Indigenous families, and the majority of participants in the study are Indigenous. This Original Research article takes a community-based participatory research approach to investigate factors of success and barriers, from the perspectives of families, frontline workers, and administrators alike.