Circle uson Math and Science in Health (MASH) Camp June 18 - 22, June 25-29, 2012 OSU - CHS, Tulsa, OK Grades 10-12 (receive $150 stipend) Sponsored by NEAHEC and State Regents for Higher Education Application due by May 4, 2012

Oklahoma Rural Health Association's 2010 Rural Health Program of the Year

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Oklahoma's 2010 Community Health Champion

 

OKAHEC's central goal is to improve access to health care

• Improving the quality, distribution and supply of primary care providers in rural and underserved communities.
• Reducing disparities in access to health care between Oklahoma's rural and urban populations.  

OKAHEC, a division of the OSU Center for Rural Health, is a community-state-federal partnership established in 1984 at OSU College of Osteopathic Medicine, which coordinates the statewide network. The four Area Health Education Centers facilitate a regional approach to multidisciplinary and community-based health professional recruitment, education and training.

OKAHEC coordinates its program goals with state health agencies, health professional training programs, practitioners, educational institutions, community leaders and many others to complete "The OKAHEC Path".

  Get 'Em

OKAHEC Career Education Programs

	Career Awareness Awareness includes general education about the array of professions in health care today. Activities include classroom presentations, career fairs, and printed materials for youth and parents. Awareness is geared to elementary and middle school, although some awareness activities are provided to high school students and adults looking to change careers.	In FYs 07-11, more than 212,521 youth received career awareness programming
	Career Exploration Exploration is in-depth education about health careers for high school youth who are pretty sure of their plans. Activities include summer camps, field trips, shadowing, counseling and teacher training.	In FYs 07-11, more than 7,282 Oklahoma youth have received an average of 20 hours of career exploration. 95% of these youth are minority/rural/disadvantaged.

Every year, graduating high school seniors who participate in 20+ hours of career exploration programming are followed-up.  Compared to an overall Oklahoma college transition rate of 55% in the first year following graduation, 86% of OKAHEC program completers have gone on to college or other advanced training programs and 56% are already committed to a career in health.

 

  Train 'Em

Clinical Training Programs When health professional students from rural areas take some of their training in rural areas the likelihood of their returning to a rural area to practice increases. OKAHEC supports community-based training opportunities so that students learn what it is like to live and work in rural communities. We do this by assisting students and training programs in finding housing, preceptors (teachers), and community contacts and projects.

In FYs 07-11, nearly 1,700 health professional students from 38 disciplines have participated in 8,917 student-weeks of community-based training sponsored by OKAHEC.

  Keep 'Em

Community Support OKAHEC provides Continuing Education and Consumer Education training throughout the state. Regional AHEC centers support local communities through grant writing, support of local programs and agencies, and various taskforce memberships. OKAHEC prides itself on its local grassroots programs.

In FYs 07-11, over 12,501 Oklahoma health care professionals have participated in OKAHEC sponsored continuing education programs and have received 88,683 hours of training.

  OKAHEC - “Get’em, Train’em, Keep’em!”