Southwest Oklahoma Area Health Education Center
The AHEC Initiative
Make a difference in your community with a rewarding healthcare career track filled with opportunities to increase access to primary care in underserved communities.
Enrollment opens each May. Learn more about the AHEC initiative.
The AHEC Scholars Program
AHEC Scholars is a nationally recognized certificate program that can set you apart.
Are you a student of a healthcare profession eager to gain additional experience that can set you apart from your peers?
Join the AHEC Scholars program to participate in clinical, didactic, and community-based activities and practice interprofessional collaboration. Be a part of a well-prepared and culturally competent primary care workforce to improve patient outcomes.
Southwest Oklahoma AHEC Shadowing Program
Interested in a career in healthcare?
Our shadowing program offers a unique opportuninty for thse interested in oursing a career in healthcare. Participants will have the chance to shadow experienced professionals while gaining valuable, firsthand insight into the daily responsibilities and challenges of the field. This is an excellent way to explore different healthcare roles and make informed decisions about your future carrer path. Join us and take the first step toward your healthcare career!
You Can Gain Firsthand Experience in
- Respiratory Therapy
- Dietary
- Information Technology
- Inpatient/Outpatient Rehab
- Laboratory
- Nursing
- Surgery
- Pharmacy
- Physician
- Radiology
- Speech Pathology
- Business Services
- Marketing
- Human Resources
Why Become an AHEC Scholar?
- The program emphasizes an interdisciplinary team-based approach to address health disparities in your communities
- Enhance healthcare knowledge in clinical and community settings
- Participate in enhanced training experiences related to health care delivery impacting underserved communities
- Some of your current clinical coursework may qualify for AHEC Scholars credit; AHEC Scholars curriculum can be completed at no cost and complements your existing coursework
- Train on topics of leadership, communication, and critical thinking
- Improved employability skills
- Resume review
- Resume building opportunities
- Job interview preparation
- Introduction to area health organizations
- Receive an official AHEC Scholars certificate and letter of completion
Am I eligible to participate?
The AHEC Scholars program is open to individuals studying in the healthcare professional fields in clinical and non-clinical roles. The program has a special interest in students from underserved, under-represented populations, and/or disadvantaged backgrounds.
- Current interest in rural or underserved healthcare
- Be currently enrolled in a college-level health professions education training program in Oklahoma
- Maintain a 2.5 GPA in a college-level health education program
- Be 2 years from program or degree completion
What are the commitments?
The program duration is two years and each year includes the following, for a total of 160 hours:
- Must attend the online orientation
- 40 hours annually of community-based, experiential, or clinical training in rural and/or underserved area
- 40 hours annually of didactic education (focused on six Core Topic Areas)
- Core Topic Areas
- Interprofessional Education
- Behavioral Health Integration
- Social Determinants of Health
- Cultural Competency
- Practice Transformation
- Current and Emerging Health Issues: The Opioid Crisis
- Complete a follow-up evaluation one (1) year after exiting the program
SW-AHEC Student to Health Care Professional Pipeline
The Southwest Oklahoma AHEC is committed to recruiting students into health career pathways and supporting them on their education journey.
Our pipeline focuses on opening the door for Oklahomans to pursue a wide range of health careers. Through collaboration with local high schools, SW-AHEC guides interested students toward available scholarships and exposes them to the healthcare field with job-shadowing experience. We also travel to schools throughout our region to provide education on healthcare careers and health topics.
SW AHEC PULSE Pipeline Programs
Summer PULSE Program
- May 24th to 27th – Simulation Center
PULSE to Profession Program
- Application Opens Jan. 1
- Application Closes March 19th
- Notices of acceptance by the first week of May
- June 7th – July 2nd
Volunteen Program
- Application Opens March 22nd
- Orientation – June 2nd
- Program – June 7th – July 23rd
- Banquet – July 23rd
Operation Orange
Altus
November 3rd – Expo Center
Lawton
March 4th – FISTA