Speciality Topics
The NCAHEC was initially developed to address national and state concerns with the supply, distribution, and retention of health care providers. Currently, the NCAHEC program consists of the program office, nine regional AHECs, and the Duke AHEC program. The mission is to support educational activities and services that focus on primary care in rural communities and those with less access to resources to recruit, train, and retain a robust workforce.
CCNC is a program that has decades of experience working with providers to promote best practices and quality improvement. CCNC uses strategic data and reporting to develop strategies and action plans for improving clinical measures and health outcomes.
MATRC is a regional program that provides technical assistance and resources to adopt and advance telehealth education and utilization across the defined region. This region includes Delaware, District of Columbia, Kentucky, Maryland, New Jersey, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia.
NCTRC is a collaboration of 12 regional and two national Telehealth Resource Centers (TRCs) that are committed to implementing telehealth programs for rural and underserved communities. These centers are funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA).
CCHP is a nonprofit organization that uses research and best-proactive models to develop telehealth virtual technologies into health care systems and practices. This organization advances telehealth policy while also providing technical assistance to telehealth resource centers previously mentioned.
University of New Mexico’s ECHO program offers information and sources specifically for the COVID-19 response. The ECHO model has allowed health care professionals across the globe to connect and share critical information about the pandemic.
NC DHHS has compiled a list of resources and telehealth and virtual patient communications since the start of COVID-19. These resources offer a variety of topics and information on the current COVID needs, changes, and tools.
CMS has produced a toolkit that is specifically for patients and providers during the COVID-19 outbreak. There are materials, websites, and resources that provide the most current information on a continually changing issue. There are also numerous webinar sessions that anyone can sign up to attend.
NC-STeP was developed in accordance to Session Law 2013-360, Senate Bill 616 and subsequently General Statute 143B-139.4B, which directed the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Rural Health (ORH) to partner with East Carolina University (ECU) on a statewide telepsychiatry program. ECU to address the gaps in access to psychiatric medical services across the state, in the over 90 mental health shortage counties in North Carolina. For individuals that were in an Emergency Department due an involuntary commitment order or a behavioral health crisis, consultation with a psychiatric provider could be several days. The hospitals often transfer patients to an inpatient psychiatric hospital to allow access to needed assessment and follow-up. The NC-STeP program offers virtual visits so patients can access psychiatric care and connect with follow-up services much sooner in their community. Starting in 2019 the program was expanded to health departments to address patients before they are in a crisis in the hospital emergency departments in NC.
This resource is a branch of MATRC that stays current with trending needs in telebehavioral health. Resources include information on clinical guidelines, HIPAA security, laws and regulations, and more.
NCAHEC has put together a short document providing quick tips on how to prepare and conduct a telebehavioral session. This guide offers a checklist, best practices, and resources to ensure smooth telemental health sessions.
The NC Oral Health Collaborative is an introduction to the definition of teledentistry, how it can be used, and current teledentistry practices.
ECHO is a combination model of education and care management that allows healthcare professionals to provide quality care to people, right where they live. The model focuses on the premise of “moving knowledge, not people.” This allows professionals to be trained on specialty topics such as HIV treatment, autism awareness, and behavioral health management in a way that they can amplify this care across their own patient populations.
V-e: ECHO Examples of Specialty Topics
The University of New Mexico offers a wide variety of ECHO specialty programs, allowing professionals across the globe to have increased education and access to a variety of topics. Below are some examples:
