AHEC Will Narrow State's Health Care Gap
The gulf between the delivery of health care and medically underserved
communities throughout Indiana will be bridged significantly in
the near future thanks to a collaborative initiative between IU
School of Medicine, the Indiana State Department of Health and the
Office of U.S. Health Resources and Administration.
Indiana's outreach to underserved communities will expand with
a $2.1 million Area Health Education Center grant, a program that
will allow the state and communities to fulfill their medical needs
through special programs. The state closes ranks with a majority
of others in the nation that have established similar programs.
"AHEC is community-based and has the flexibility to meet the
changing and often unique needs of a community," says Stephen
J. Jay, MD, associate dean and chair of IUSM's Department of Public
Health. Dr. Jay is the project's principal investigator and was
the major player in bringing AHEC to Indiana.
Regional AHECs will be established throughout the state with the
first forming in the Terre Haute area. The West Central AHEC, as
the region is called, already has set up an advisory board to identify
goals. The Northwest AHEC of Lake County will form this year too,
and plans are under way for the Southeast-South Central AHEC, covering
a 20-county region. Smaller community programs for the medically
underserved will be established by 2006.
Federal funding is for a three-year period, but renewal options
are provided. Additionally, funding commitments from the State Department
of Health and IUSM will finance the project.
Indiana Senators Richard Lugar and Evan Bayh and Gov. Frank O'Bannon
were instrumental in securing funding, as were several other federal
and state legislators.
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