About Area Health Education Center
The Area Health Education Center (AHEC) was first funded by Congress in 1971 to recruit, train and retain a health professions workforce committed to underserved populations. AHECs strive to meet the needs of the communities they serve through robust community-academic partnerships, with a focus on exposure, education, and training of the current and future health care workforce.
Today, 46 AHEC programs with more than 261 centers operate in almost every state and the District of Columbia. Approximately 120 medical schools and 600 nursing and allied health schools work collaboratively with AHECs to improve health for underserved and underrepresented populations.
About North Central Indiana Area Health Education Center
Closer to home, there are 8 AHEC districts in Indiana. The North Central Indiana AHEC (NCI-AHEC) was the last to be formed in 2010 and is hosted by the Fulton Economic Development Corporation in Rochester, Indiana. NCI-AHEC covers 11 counties:
Benton, White, Pulaski, Fulton, Cass, Carroll, Tippecanoe, Clinton, Tipton, Howard and Miami
The NCI-AHEC has an Advisory Board with representation of the region’s diversity and includes members from local hospitals, health professions training programs, academia, mental health providers, and others. The Advisory Board members guide the region’s activities and promote linkages with community partners across the region. NCI-AHEC continues to develop key partnerships through networking and community engagement.
An Executive Director was hired July 18, 2011 and the staff has grown to three additional members. Strategic planning continues to be at the forefront and programs have been established across the district. In partnership with various agencies, NCI-AHEC is able to offer extensive summer healthcare career camps, healthcare career counseling, medical school preparedness programs, clinical programs, and continuing education programs. All NCI-AHEC programs provide educational opportunities to underrepresented, disadvantaged, and minority students.
Family Practice Clerkship rotations, on behalf of the IU School of Medicine, continue to be a high priority for the NCI-AHEC. In fact, NCI-AHEC has secured 38 clerkship placements for the 2018-2019 academic year. NCI-AHEC is also making great strides in furthering its work with the new Marian University, School of Osteopathic Medicine, The Purdue University School of Pharmacy, and IU Kokomo School of Nursing. The continuing education programming will continue to focus on mental health, quality of care, and cultural competency. Clinical education programs for healthcare professions students include: AHEC Scholars, Successfully Training and Educating Preclinical Students, and Rural Healthcare Clinical Education.
Download the North Central Indiana AHEC 2018-2019 Annual Report Highlights
Download the Indiana AHEC 2017-2018 Annual Report Highlights