Alaska's AHEC Program
What is Alaska's AHEC?
Area Health Education Centers (AHECs) are a network of programs and centers in the
United States designed to improve access to health care and address health care workforce
shortages, particularly in underserved and rural areas. The AHEC program was established
by the U.S. Congress in 1971 and is administered by the Health Resources and Services
Administration (HRSA). Alaska’s AHEC began at the University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA)
in 2005 and was the first in the country to be awarded through a School of Nursing,
rather than a School of Medicine.
The Alaska AHEC program office is located within the UAA Alaska Center for Rural Health & Health Workforce. The program office contracts with six regional Centers who are hosted by community partners across the state. These Centers are dedicated to healthcare workforce engagement, training, recruiting, and retaining activities through academic and community based partnerships. Each center implements educational activities involving exposure for students to health care delivery in rural and/or underserved settings.
AHEC's Strategies
Engage: Engaging youth and adults by providing educational hands-on activities, camps, and events exploring and preparing for health care careers and opportunities in Alaska.
Train: Training health profession students for practice in rural and underserved communities by targeting all disciplines from certificate to doctoral programs and working with health facilities and providers across the state to provide community based experiential learning opportunities.
Retain: Retaining a high quality health care workforce in Alaska by providing access to continuing education, resiliency, and loan repayment opportunities. The ultimate goal is to stabilize the health workforce to better meet the health care needs of Alaska.
Regional AHEC Centers
- Northwest (Nome) is hosted by Norton Sound Health Corporation (NSHC)
- Interior (Fairbanks) is hosted by Tanana Chiefs Conference (TCC)
- Yukon-Kuskokwim (Bethel) is hosted by Yukon-Kuskokwim Health Corporation (YKHC)
- South Central (Anchorage) is hosted by Alaska Primary Care Association (APCA)
- Southeast (Juneau) is hosted by Southeast Regional Resource Center (SERRC)
- Southwest (Anchorage) is hosted by Aleutian Pribilof Island Association (APIA)
Partners & Collaborations
Alaska’s AHEC Program is not possible without strategic partnerships. AHEC works in collaboration with health care institutions, universities, community organizations, and local governments to achieve the goal of engaging, training, and retaining the health workforce. These partnerships help expand the reach and positive impact of Alaska’s rural and underserved communities.
We thank all of our partners for supporting Alaska AHEC’s mission!
Resources
- Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)
- National AHEC Organization (NAO)
- HOSA-Future Health Professionals
- Alaska Department of Education and Early Development (DEED)
- Department of Labor and Workforce Development (DLWD)
- Division of Public Health (DPH)
Contact information for each center and it's director can be found here.
