"Advancing the development of a high-quality healthcare workforce to improve the health of every Oregonian"
The Oregon Healthcare Workforce Institute’s regional Area Health Education Center (OHWI-AHEC) supports the recruitment, retention and training of a high-quality healthcare workforce, especially those providing primary care services in Oregon's rural and urban underserved communities.
The mission of OHWI AHEC is to improve the health of individuals in rural and underserved areas through education and workforce development. It designs educational programming to inspire Oregon’s youth to pursue healthcare careers in rural and underserved settings, support them in becoming healthcare professionals and provide continuing education.
OHWI-AHEC leverages the combined resources of Pacific University, Oregon Health & Science University and community partnerships to enrich the experiences, training and education of future and practicing healthcare professionals.
One of five centers in the Oregon AHEC system, OHWI-AHEC leverages the educational resources of Pacific University’s healthcare professions programs to benefit the health of Oregon’s rural and urban underserved communities by developing a high-quality healthcare workforce.
Our region serves Washington, Multnomah and Clackamas counties, which includes the Portland metro area. Our service region is home to some of Oregon’s largest health systems, health professions education programs and the state’s largest community of practicing health professionals.
OHWI-AHEC provides enhanced educational opportunities for Pacific’s health professions students through the AHEC Scholars program. The Center also partners with Pacific in community outreach programming, helping future students discover their purpose as healthcare providers through our health careers exploration camps and mentorship programs.