Whitefield, NH –The North Country Health Consortium's Northern NH Area Health Education Center (AHEC) has been selected for funding from the Tillotson Fund to develop and implement the North Country Health Care Occupations initiative.

Northern NH AHEC is administered by the Consortium through a contract with Dartmouth Medical School to provide strategies to recruit and retain health professionals in NH's North Country.  The North Country Health Care Occupations Initiative will develop and implement a health careers "pipeline" to expand the number of adults and young adults seeking a career in health care in the region.  

Key components of the initiative are: the creation of the Health Care Occupations Counselor position; the development of a health careers camp; job shadowing and mentoring in health careers; development of math and science enrichment programs; collaboration with area schools and colleges; help with application preparation, financial aid information for those students interested in following post-secondary educational goals; initiatives to bring students back to the North Country after completion of their education; and production and distribution of the New Hampshire AHEC Health Careers Catalog.

"I am excited to launch our North Country Health Care Occupations Initiative It was designed to foster interest, provide continuing support and  "hands on" assistance directed at recruiting and retaining North Country students into health careers occupations," says Martha McLeod, Executive Director.

This initiative was developed based on a report by the New Hampshire Citizens Health Initiative, Workforce Committee titled "Strategies to Address the Issues of Access to New Hampshire's Primary Care Workforce." Their report contained several recommendations including "Support for New Hampshire Health Careers Pipeline Programs."  The interventions in the Consortium's initiative mirror the report's recommendations.

The Consortium's member organizations work to build community-based disease prevention and health promotion activities, improve regional healthcare, offer health professional training, and encourage sustainability of the health care infrastructure. They also coordinate responses to health care financing challenges that are sensitive to maintaining the stability of rural communities and rural economies.

The North Country Health Consortium is a nonprofit organization dedicated to leading collaborative strategies to improve the health status of the region For more information visit www.nchin.org.