Office of Primary Care and Area Health Education Centers (AHEC) Program

Vermont has three AHEC locations: north and south regional offices, as well as the program office at UVM's Larner College of Medicine.

(MARCH 31, 2023) Elizabeth Cote, director of the Office of Primary Care and Area Health Education Centers (AHEC) Program at the Larner College of Medicine, spoke to NBC5 during National AHEC Workforce Development Week.

“The AHEC program works to bring career awareness and career exploration opportunities to Vermont’s youth, starting with fifth graders,” she said. “There are a lot of programs for high school students [and] undergraduate students who are here in Vermont.” The goal of AHEC is for all Vermont’s residents to have access to health care.

A group representing Vermont’s three AHECs — north and south regional offices and the program office at UVM — went to the Vermont State House in Montpelier to talk with lawmakers about the importance of the programs, which help to feed the health care workforce pipeline through education in the state and offering school-age Vermonters health care job shadowing and other enrichment opportunities. AHEC also offers educational loan repayment programs for nurses, dentists, physicians, and others and works on retaining health care professionals through trainings and grants.