[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 74 (Monday, June 12, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1119]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    RECOGNIZING NATIONAL AREA HEALTH EDUCATION CENTERS ORGANIZATIONS

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                             HON. LEE TERRY

                              of nebraska

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, June 12, 2006

  Mr. TERRY. Mr. Speaker, today I want to call attention to an 
important event occurring in my district and recognize the two programs 
giving rise to this event, which have had a tremendous impact on the 
health care of underserved populations in our country. Beginning June 
10 and continuing through June 14, the Nebraska Area Health Education 
program and the University of Nebraska Medical Center are sponsoring 
the National Area Health Education Center Organization's (NAO) annual 
meeting in my district in Omaha, Nebraska. I want to use the 
opportunity of the national meeting to illustrate the importance of 
Area Health Education Centers (AHECs) and Health Education Training 
Centers (HETCs) through the many services and programs they offer.
  Area Health Education Centers, established by Congress in 1971, are 
academic-community partnerships that train health care providers at 
sites and in programs that are responsive to state and local needs. 
AHECs improve the supply, distribution, diversity and quality of the 
health workforce and increase access to health care in medically 
underserved areas. Furthermore, AHECs facilitate coordination of the 
resources of health science centers with local educational and clinical 
resources, which in turn establishes a network that provides multi-
disciplinary educational services to students, faculty, and 
practitioners.
  Health Education Training Centers, established in 1989, provide 
community health education and health professions training programs in 
areas of the United States with severely underserved populations, such 
as border states. Together, AHEC and HETC programs recruit, train, and 
retain health professionals committed to serving underserved 
populations and provide community programs for specific populations 
with severe unmet health needs. Across the country, there are 61 AHEC/
HETC programs and 215 affiliated AHEC centers that collaborate with 
over 120 medical schools and 600 nursing and allied health schools to 
improve the health of the underserved.
  As reported by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, in a 
typical year, AHECs alone will train 37,000 health professions students 
in community-based sites, provide health career enhancement and 
recruitment activities of 20 hours or more to 42,000 high school 
students, and provide continuing education to 315,000 health care 
providers. In FY 2005, nearly 10,000 physicians participated in 
mentoring and training activities to students in community sites. Also, 
AHEC/HETCs were credited with providing training in medically 
underserved communities to over 47,000 health professions students.
  Recent studies and reports express serious concern regarding the 
current and predicted shortage of health care professionals across the 
country, which further illustrates the important work of AHEC/HETCs. In 
2005, AHECs/HETCs were successful in introducing health careers to 
300,000 students ranging from kindergarten through college.
  Mr. Speaker, AHEC/HETC programs serve many important purposes with 
respect to the recruitment, retention, education and training of health 
professionals in underserved areas. Today, I would like to fully 
recognize, appreciate and honor the efforts and activities of AHEC/HETC 
programs and centers throughout the United States in addressing the 
nation's most critical health care and health care access issues. I 
hope my colleagues will join me in commending all the participants in 
Omaha on the occasion of their national meeting, and thanking them for 
their service to our country.

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