National AHEC Week March 24-28, 2025: Celebrating the Impact of the AHEC Program

March 24, 2025

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

National AHEC Week March 24-28, 2025: Celebrating the Impact of the AHEC Program

Area Health Education Centers (AHEC) will celebrate National AHEC Week March 24-28, 2025, highlighting the AHEC mission and rallying supporters to advocate for legislative action on behalf of the program.

AHECs strengthen the nation’s healthcare workforce and improve access to primary and preventative care, especially in rural and underserved communities. Through partnerships between academic and community organizations, AHECs recruit, train, and retain a diverse healthcare workforce ready to address national shortages and meet the needs of underserved populations.

“When communities’ healthcare needs are met, our society is stronger and more resilient,” said Wanda Thomas, M.D., National AHEC Organization President and LSU Health Shreveport ACEC program director. “AHEC training, recruitment, and retention of a culturally competent healthcare workforce make us an impactful organization throughout the country.”

In 2024, 685,000 individuals participated in AHEC programs, with more than 270,000 students engaging in health career pathways programming. In addition, AHECs facilitated over 30,000 clinical rotations, with 44% of those rotations occurring in rural areas.

“AHECs connect students to opportunities, communities to providers, and educators to industry needs,” said Gloria Burnett, Director of the Alaska AHEC program. “Our success in not only recruiting but retaining healthcare professionals in Alaska is changing the trajectory of healthcare access in our state.”

One of AHECs key programs, AHEC Scholars, allows health professions students to gain additional knowledge and experience in key areas through both didactic and hands-on education to better help underserved communities.

In 2024, 7,738 students from fields such as medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, and public health participated in the AHEC Scholars program.

Duke Escobar, M.D. candidate and AHEC Scholar said, “Growing up in a rural community, finding career exploration experiences was difficult. The AHEC Scholars program exposed me to volunteer and shadowing opportunities, teaching me the importance of empathy and understanding a patient’s struggles.”

The AHEC program, legislated by Congress in 1971 and administered by the Health Resource Services Administration (HRSA), includes 300 AHECs across nearly every state and multiple U.S. territories.

To learn more about the AHEC program impact, visit www.nationalahec.org or email info@nationalahec.org.