As we celebrate this joyful season, we want to express our heartfelt gratitude to our partners, whose support has been key to our success. With sincere appreciation, we wish you a wonderful holiday season and a prosperous New Year.

SINCERELY,
THE NORTHWEST AHEC STAFF
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This year marked a monumental milestone for Northwest AHEC, celebrating five decades of advancing healthcare access and education across its 17-county region. Key highlights include:

• Health Careers and Workforce Diversity - Providing people with knowledge and opportunity.
  Programs like Camp Med and AHEC Scholars engaged thousands of students to inspire careers in healthcare. 1,032 Participants with 789 Hours for Health Careers Activities. The NC Health Talent Alliance, a statewide talent solution, is aggressively addressing the state’s critical health care talent shortages reaching 4,000+ stakeholders. Initiatives like the Share the Health Fair provided outreach to 300+ attendees and the Healthcare Legends of East Winston honoring impactful community contributors. 
• Student Services - Creating Connections Between Students and Communities.
  Northwest AHEC helps coordinate with each affiliated university to secure housing for students during rotations. Over 4,500 nights provided and 141 students housed.
• Graduate Medical Education and Patient Services Support - Firsthand experience in making a difference.
  Through its educational programs, Northwest AHEC helps residents and medical students recognize and best meet the needs of people in our communities who are uninsured, underinsured and underserved. Of the Northwest AHEC-supported Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist residents who graduated in AY24 71% chose to stay in NC (45 of 63) with over 50,500 indigent/underserved patients served by the residents during AY24.
  
• Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Activities and Services - Enhancing the skills of today’s professionals.
  Northwest AHEC offered continuing professional development opportunities with even more professional topics. Over 2,100 total activities offered including topics on health equity, interprofessional collaboration, dance medicine, respiratory care,  nursing, mental health, and resilience against burnout. CPD activities attracted over 50,200 participants, with nearly 19% being new attendees.
• Practice Support Services - Reinforcing excellence in practices across our region. 
  Northwest AHEC strengthened its commitment to providing activities and coaching to meet the ongoing and evolving needs of providers throughout the region. The number of coaching encounters in continued to rise (2,727 vs. 2,695 in AY23), covering 25 different topics. Online learning modules, practice coaching, and Medicaid grants empowered healthcare providers with cutting-edge tools and strategies. Two supported practices received Rural Health Excellence Awards for improving community health outcomes.
• Progressing Toward Health Equity.
  Northwest AHEC developed goals to enhance the health of the public by intentionally addressing Social Determinants of Health (SDOH), Cultural Humility and Health Disparities. Close to 200 Northwest AHEC programs emphasized cultural competency, health disparities, and social determinants of health, ensuring healthcare professionals reflect the communities they serve.
  
  

We invite you to view our 2023-2024 Annual Report for more details

Northwest AHEC celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2024. Founded in 1974 by esteemed Wake Forest University School of Medicine leaders, Drs. Manson Meads, Richard Janeway and Emery Miller, Northwest AHEC was born out of a vision to enhance health care accessibility in Northwest North Carolina.

Northwest AHEC has remained steadfast in its commitment to improving access to primary care,
especially in rural communities and areas lacking
sufficient resources.

To learn more about our 50-year history, visit nwahec.org/50years.

These last 50 years have been filled with truly remarkable examples of what people can accomplish for our communities when we work together. As we look ahead with optimism and determination, we look forward to partnering with community leaders, schools, universities and organizations across our region to help recruit, train and retain the needed health professionals to care for ALL citizens. Together we can continue our mission to create a healthier North Carolina.