UH Rural Health Program Receives AHEC Support

University of Hawaiʻi
Contact:
Shawn Nakamoto, (808) 956-9095
University and Community Relations
Kristen Cabral, (808) 956-5039
University and Community Relations
Posted: Jan 10, 2002

The Quentin N. Burdick Rural Health Program, co-sponsored by the University of Hawaiʻi at Manoa School of Nursing and Dental Hygiene, the Kauaʻi Rural Health Association, and University Health Group has received a generous contribution from the Hawaiʻi Area Health Education Center (AHEC).

The Quentin Burdick program, funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Administration, provides an opportunity for UH students from a variety of health disciplines to participate in multidisciplinary teams during spring seminars and a summer practicum at six rural sites on neighbor islands. Last year, 23 students from the UH Manoa Schools of Nursing and Dental Hygiene, Medicine, Social Work, and the Departments of Psychology and Medical Technology collaborated with community members to design and carry out health-enhancing programs at six rural sites on the Big Island, Maui, Kauaʻi, and Molokaʻi.

AHEC has provided 225 interisland coupons — enough to cover the neighbor island transportation needs for the participating students and faculty throughout the current program year. AHEC is a program based within the John A. Burns School of Medicine that works with communities across Hawaiʻi and the Pacific Basin to improve the health of the underserved through education. The program is a grant funded through the U.S. Department of Health Services Administration, with matching funds from UH and community organizations. AHEC‘s mission to improve the health of the underserved through education is one that is shared by the Quentin Burdick program.

Dr. Jan Shoultz, Quentin Burdick program coordinator, expressed her appreciation on behalf of the program. "The Quentin Burdick program and AHEC have always had a strong partnership and this recent contribution demonstrates our continued commitment to improving the health of rural and underserved communities in Hawaiʻi," she stated.

Dr. Kelley Withy, Statewide AHEC program director emphasized the need for collaboration and said, "The more we work together, the greater our impact can be. The UH School of Nursing and Dental Hygiene‘s Quentin N. Burdick Rural Health Program is an excellent program that we hope to support for years to come."

For more information about the Quentin Burdick Rural Health program, contact program director Dr. Jan Shoultz at 956-8426. For more information about the AHEC program, contact executive director Dr. Kelley Withy at 956-3167.