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.
Expansion
of Collaborative Practices- [Southwest AHEC]
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.
Virginia
Center for Health Outreach (VCHO) - [Blue
Ridge AHEC]
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.
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