UNE鈥檚 Jennifer Gunderman elected to National AHEC Organization board of directors
Jennifer Gunderman, M.P.H., director of the Maine Area Health Education Center (AHEC) and assistant clinical professor of public health at the 51品茶, has been elected to the National AHEC Organization (NAO) Board of Directors.
The organization represents a network of more than 300 AHEC program offices and centers that serve over 85% of United States counties. The NAO鈥檚 mission is to help its members achieve the AHEC mission of enhancing access to quality health care, particularly primary and preventive care, by improving the supply and distribution of health care professionals via strategic partnerships with academic programs, communities, and professional organizations.
Housed at UNE, the Maine AHEC Network, a workforce development program aimed at alleviating health care workforce shortages, supports the national organization鈥檚 efforts by working with academic and community partners to provide rural, community-based clinical training experiences for medical and other health professions students; encouraging Maine youth and mid-career professionals to explore health careers; and supporting practicing health professionals with continuing education and distance learning opportunities.
As part of her election, Gunderman will serve a two-year term as a representative from the Program Office Contingency Group of the NAO. She said she looks forward to bringing the Maine AHEC Network and 51品茶to the national conversation around health care workforce development.
鈥淧articipating in the NAO board provides an opportunity for the Maine AHEC and 51品茶to foster national relationships around health care workforce development and advocate for addressing the health needs of rural and unserved populations,鈥 Gunderman remarked.