A health education center will be formed over the next year to address health-care needs in 22 counties in northern Nebraska, as part of a federal grant that has been awarded to UNMC.
The Northern Nebraska Area Health Education Center (NN-AHEC) will be centered in Norfolk. The federal AHEC program allows medical schools and community centers to cooperate to recruit and train health-care professionals to serve in rural areas. Officials formally announced the forming of the NN-AHEC at a news conference Friday.
“Ultimately, the overall health of northern Nebraskans will benefit because of the AHEC,” said Michael Sitorius, M.D., chairman of the UNMC department of family medicine and director of the AHEC program in Nebraska. “The AHEC centers provide a means to augment what the state, university and rural communities already are doing to recruit, educate and train students to practice in rural Nebraska. We look forward to partnering with rural communities to educate students and practitioners for rural health care.”
Second AHEC in the state
The health education center in northern Nebraska is the second AHEC in the state. The Central Nebraska AHEC was organized over the past year and serves 28 counties. A three-year, $2.08 million grant awarded to UNMC in September 2001 provides funding for the centers.
The Northern Nebraska AHEC soon will hire an executive director and staff. The executive director will report to a board of directors. The federal grant stipulates that 75 percent of the money must be spent in the rural Nebraska centers, and UNMC can receive 25 percent for administrative support.
“We have a great opportunity to work with diverse partnerships in our 22-county area to assess the educational needs of our current health-care providers, to promote health-care careers in our youth and to promote community-based health education,” said Sally McKenzie, director of outreach and medical staff development at Faith Regional Health Services in Norfolk and chairperson of the NN-AHEC Board of Directors. “The addition of a family practice residency program in Norfolk will provide future family practice physicians for the region.”
McKenzie indicated that recruitment has begun for the program’s executive director, with a target start date of Nov. 1, 2002.
Grant receives political support
UNMC was awarded the grant through a competitive process. Dr. Sitorius, a Cozad native, said the Nebraska congressional delegation and state officials — including Gov. Mike Johanns — were supportive of UNMC’s funding application for the centers. Rep. Doug Bereuter, R-Neb., was on hand Friday for the formal announcement of the Northern Nebraska AHEC.
Commitment to rural Nebraska
UNMC formalized its commitment to rural Nebraska nearly a decade ago when it formed the Rural Health Education Network (RHEN), which has begun several programs — including eighth-grade science meets and the highly successful Rural Health Opportunities Program (RHOP) — to address rural health-care shortages.
“AHEC will build on the success of RHEN and will provide for more community decision-making, in terms of their health-care needs and resources,” said Roxanna Jokela, coordinator of RHEN and deputy director of the UNMC AHEC program.