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Project Name: Area Health Education Centers (AHEC) Program (U77)
Applicant Title: University of Arizona
Abstract Text: PROJECT TITLE: Arizona Area Health Education Centers (AzAHEC) Program APPLICANT ORGANIZATION: The University of Arizona (UArizona) STATE: Arizona DEPARTMENT: UArizona Office of the Senior Vice President for Health Sciences PROGRAM PHASE: Point of Service Maintenance and Enhancement (POSME) PROJECT DIRECTOR: Daniel Derksen, M.D. EMAIL: xxxxxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx ADDRESS: 1834 E. Mabel St, Tucson, AZ 85721-0425 PHONE: xxx-xxx-xxxx FAX: xxx-xxx-xxxx WEBSITE: www.azahec.org GRANT PROGRAM FUNDS REQUESTED: $4,144,000 Overview: The AzAHEC Program purpose is to develop, enhance and sustain education and training networks within communities, prioritizing primary care in off-campus, rural and underserved areas. Its five-year project specific, measurable objectives are to: 1) Provide education and community-based experiential training (CBET) via field placements and clinical rotations for health professions students and the AHEC Scholars Program (ASP). 2) Improve the health professions pipeline, pathways to practice, and continuing education to assure a well-trained, diverse health workforce and provide recruitment, training, interactive and didactic pipeline activities for grade 9-12 high school students and pre-health professions undergraduates emphasizing health careers including public health. 3) Provide continuing education (CE) for practicing providers emphasizing Bureau of Health Workforce (BHW) core topics. 4) Develop strategic partnerships to implement, advance, and sustain AzAHEC Program activities and transform care delivery. 5) Use an outcome focused statewide AHEC Program Evaluation Plan. Who We Are: The AzAHEC Program Office began in 1984 in Tucson, and now has five AzAHEC Regional Centers (Western Arizona, Central Arizona, Eastern Arizona, Southern Arizona and Northern Arizona AHEC Regional Centers serving all of Arizona. AzAHEC received core federal funding (1984-95), then began its POSME phase, and with this 2022-27 cycle proposes a sixth AzAHEC Regional Center to address American Indian health and workforce needs. What We Plan to Do: Our proposal addresses HRSA, BHW, AHEC and Arizona priorities to enhance health equity, reduce health disparities, and prepare a diverse and culturally competent primary care workforce. Where, How: CBET increases the likelihood that graduates practice in rural, underserved areas, along with ASP, BHW, CE and pipeline activities. The AzAHEC Program Evaluation Plan uses validated student, provider, health workforce, site specific, demographic and other surveys, data and analyses, and comprehensive longitudinal tracking from pipeline pre-collegiate and pathways to practice from college/university, health professions preparation, admission, matriculation and on into rural and urban underserved area practice. Data is used to improve AzAHEC activities and inform policy deliberations to address unmet rural health needs. For example, 2017-22 Evaluation Plan data was used to plan Tribal AHEC implementation, expand the Primary Care Scholarship Program and create new allied health programs (PA, PT, CNM) prioritizing rural and underserved areas in 2022-27.