Clinical training experiences are a vital component of the education of health professions students. Virginia's medically underserved rural and urban communities need primary care health professionals, so AHEC partners with Virginia's academic health science centerS, universities, and colleges to develop training programs for students that bring them to communities in need. And while nursing, dental, medical, pharmacy, and allied health students and residents are receiving training in local communities, they also help their preceptor provide needed health care services.
Students explore the community and find that they can get to know their patients on a personal level. By taking students and residents away from the tertiary-care hospital and exposing them to primary care practices in local Virginia communities, AHEC's partnerships are making primary care a viable choice.
One of Southwest Virginia AHEC's program priorities includes the expansion of collaborative practices utilizing nurse practitioners and physician assistants. The recent creation of a nurse practitioner program at Radford University and the expansion of the University of Virginia's nurse practitioner training to Clinch Valley College in Southwest Virginia has resulted in more nurse practitioner students seeking clinical training in Southwest Virginia. The Southwest Virginia AHEC has been involved with the development of both programs anD has identified community-based clinical sites and provided funding support to students. The demand for qualified nurse practitioners in local communities is steady; these programs are helping to fill those needs for providers in underserved communities.
The Southwest Virginia AHEC has also been involved with the development of a new baccalaureate level Physician Assistant program in the Roanoke College of Health Sciences which enrolled its first PA students in Fall 1997. These students began community-based clinical rotations in 1998, and the SWVAHEC is working closely with the College's clinical coordinator to support students completing training in rural and underserved sites. The need for additional students support remains and will likely grow as more clinical sites are identified and prepared for PA students. There are several practices and health centers currently recruiting for nurse practitioners and physician assistants, and it is anticipated that the clinical training supported by the SWVAHEC will lead to employment opportunities for some of the students.
Choosing a career is one of the most important decisions a person makes. Each person must investigate personal interests, future job market trends and existing opportunities for jobs and career growth in the field. These questions are difficult to answer without a chance to review a profession up close. The Institute wants to make this decision easier by offering rising high school Sophomore, Juniors and Seniors an opportunity to attend a special summer program.
The purpose of the VCHO is to develop an infrastructure to strengthen the practice, policy, and research of the Community Health Advisor/Worker (CHA/W) field in Virginia while acknowledging and capitalizing upon the key roles CHA/Ws play in improving public health, providing preventive services, and facilitating access to primary care.
Community health advisors/workers are trained lay persons who serve as health resource persons in the communities where they live and work. As accepted members of their communities, CHA/Ws effectively promote health among groups that have traditionally lacked adequate care and help low income and minority communities gain access to America's health care system. They also remove barriers to primary and preventive health care by implementing culturally appropriate health education and outreach.
