Central Washington Area Health Education Center

Area Health Education Centers (AHECs) are a national program developed by Congress and administered by the Health Resources and Services Administration in 1971 to recruit, train and retain a health professions workforce committed to underserved populations. AHECs work to improve the diversity, distribution, and quality of the healthcare workforce in their local communities, relying on partnerships between AHEC program offices, academic institutions, hospitals, clinics and the communities they serve. AHEC promotes health career pathways, creates healthcare educational opportunities for students as young as elementary age through high school, offers professional and post-graduate training, and supports health care providers working with underserved populations. AHEC focuses on developing and enhancing education and training networks within communities, academic institutions, and community-based organizations. The main programs include: Pathway Development (K-12), Continuing Education, Rural Underserved Opportunities Program (RUOP), and AHEC Scholars. Each AHEC also engages in different “passion projects” as activities to promote workforce development within each respective region. The AHECS also partner with other organizations to do presentations and attend conferences with the main goal of connecting with the rural and underserved communities and helping to close the gaps in rural healthcare.