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The NIAHEC supports
and co-sponsors a number of health career initiatives. These activities
support the following program objective:
Identify and recruit
young people from underserved areas for health careers
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Health
Careers Summit held on May 7, 2004 on the campus site of
the Northern Illinois AHEC. Fifty-seven persons attended the one-
day conference. Lt. Governor Patrick Quinn addressed the conference
and announced a grant award to the Northern IL AHEC for a health careers
summer camp. Representatives of eight high schools, three rural hospitals,
five community colleges and one national association to support students
entering health careers and a regional Latino support organization
participated in a series of guided discussions to build a fourteen
county regional approach to promoting health careers for youth. Evaluations
of the conference, summary reports of the guided discussions, and
an expanded planning group were all outcomes of this event which was
organized in concert with representatives of the aforementioned institutions
to address the challenges of recruiting and supporting young persons
from rural underserved areas many of whom are from underrepresented
populations. The summit planning group are continuing to meet and
plan additional activities in the fourteen counties of the Northern
IL AHEC region for 2004-2005.
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Health
Careers Camp held June 11-13, 2004 on the campus of Western
Illinois University in Macomb, Illinois. Funding sponsors in addition
to the Northern Illinois AHEC for the camp included: the Office
of the Lt. Governor, the University
of Illinois Chicago School of Public Health, and the Critical
Access Hospital Network. The camp was supported by the National
Center for Rural Health Professions of the University of Illinois,
the Western Illinois AHEC, and the Illinois Rural Health Association.
Twenty four high school students/campers from 13 high schools and
eight counties and nine health professions students/counselors attended
this three day program from the catchment areas of the Northern Illinois
and the Western Illinois AHECs. The purpose of the camp was to provide
rural underserved and underrepresented high school students an opportunity
to learn about health professions careers. Presentations and round
table discussions were led by the variety of practicing health professionals
as well as high school guidance counselors, human resource representatives
from rural hospitals and university health and science schools faculty.
Outcomes from the camp include: evaluations from the campers and counselors
as well as the formation of a planning committee for an expanded program
of health career camps in 2005.
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Multiple
Discipline Recruitment Activities: The recruiter of the University
of Illinois Rural Medical Education program and the National Center
for Rural Health Professions provided information and encouragement
to rural and underserved youth to pursue health professions careers
through visits to high schools, Illinois community colleges and universities,
and a variety of career fairs and prominent county, regional, and
state activities involving youth. Staff of the Northern IL AHEC have
worked with state and local agencies such as rural hospitals, Northern
Illinois University, the University
of Illinois Extension, the Illinois
Farm Bureau, and the Illinois
Rural Health Association to coordinate health career promotion
activities for youth.
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Rural
Interdisciplinary Health Professions Students Summer Preceptorship:
In collaboration with the KSB Hospital in Dixon, IL, four health professions
students representing the disciplines of medicine, nursing, social
work and public health participated in a six week rural interdisciplinary
health professions immersion program. The curriculum consists of a
classroom component, a clinical shadowing component, a community service
learning component and a continuation component. (Note: This activity
is co-sponsored by the National Center for Rural Health Professions
and KSB Hospital).
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