Outreach
Area Health Education Center (AHEC)
In 1985, the UW assumed sponsorship of the AHEC program to help alleviate shortages of health care personnel in medically underserved rural and urban areas of the Northwest and Alaska. The regional AHEC network comprises six centers:
- Area Health Education Center of Eastern Washington (Spokane)
- Western Washington AHEC (Seattle)
- Wyoming AHEC (Laramie)
- Alaska Center for Rural Health (Anchorage)
- Montana AHEC (Bozeman)
- Idaho AHEC (Boise)
The centers are among some 150 AHECs across the nation that address emerging health care concerns.
Programs for Healthy Communities (PHC)
Based at the UW School of Medicine and at the Area Health Education Centers (AHEC), PHC has worked with over 60 towns in the WWAMI states since 1989 to strengthen health care delivery systems and improve the practice environment. Assistance includes assessment of community health care delivery needs and implementation of recommendations within community settings.
Rural Health Research Center (RHRC)
The RHRC engages in a variety of inquiries, with a focus on rural and underserved health care issues. It is one of five federally funded, policy-oriented rural health research centers.