 |
|
|
|
HISTORY While advances in medical science have dramatically improved the health status of American people, imbalance in the accessibility and availability of services have continually affected the health care system. In 1971 the Carnegie Commission on Higher Education issued a landmark report entitled, “Higher Education and the Nation’s Health” advocating educational incentives and regionalized training programs, to address the specialty and geographic misdistribution of health professionals in medically underserved areas. Based upon the Carnegie Commission’s findings, in 1972 Congress authorized the establishment of the national Area Health Education Center (AHEC) program. In October 1984, through Meharry Medical College, Tennessee became one of 42 states in the country to enter into a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to develop AHEC programs. WTAHEC was established as a 501-c-3 non-profit organization in 1987 as one of three Tennessee AHEC centers to address the national AHEC mission of improving supply and distribution of health care professionals, with emphasis on primary care through community academic educational partnerships to increase access to quality health care. WTAHEC serves twenty-one (21) counties west of the Tennessee River, through five program components including: 1) linking community organizations and educational institutions in the health professions; 2) coordinating and conducting education programs for health professionals; 3) promoting training experiences in medically underserved areas through community-based experiences; 4) enhancing consumer awareness of health, wellness and preventive care; and 5) recruiting students for health professions programs and promoting their return to underserved communities to deliver health care.
|
