AHEC Review 
Spring 2009
(click here to download a pdf of this AHEC Review)
Director's message
We are living and working in challenging times. Each day we are faced with the
news of additional job cuts, rising unemployment and a serious erosion in local, state and federal revenues. Here in North Carolina, Governor Perdue and the General Assembly are grappling with filling a $2-$3 billion budget hole, and all state programs have received substantial reductions in funding.
As a result of this challenging financial situation, programs are having to be
postponed or cut back, we are having to raise fees for some services, and we are looking at every way possible to maximize our efficiencies as a state AHEC program. As I have been visiting AHECs the last several months, however, I have been impressed with the spirit of our staff, their continued commitment to our mission and programs, and the very creative ways they are managing to maintain high quality services in the midst of reduced resources.
In this issue we unveil a new tagline for the state AHEC Program: “Creating a Better State of Health.” It is important in difficult times such as these that we
stay focused on the message of this new tagline, so that we wisely use our resources most effectively to develop programs and services that will ultimately lead to a better state of health for the people of North Carolina. When all is said and done, what the AHEC Program is about is educating students, residents and health professionals in order to improve access to high quality health care for
North Carolinians. In this issue we also unveil a new Web site called Touched by an AHEC: Stories from Across the State. Touched by an AHEC gives us an opportunity to highlight some of the stories of students and health practitioners who have been touched by AHEC programs and services and who are now contributing to a better state of health in their own communities. We invite you to go to that Web site and see some of the stories that have been collected by the AHECs.
As we work through this challenging time, we welcome your ideas and suggestions about how we can most effectively meet the health workforce needs of North Carolina. I know I speak for all of the faculty and staff across the AHEC system in saying that we remain committed to getting through this tough time with even stronger programs designed to meet the health workforce needs of the communities of the state.
Thomas J. Bacon, DrPH
Director, NC AHEC Program