Wednesday, March 12, 2025
3/12/2025
ECU-AMMPeD: Amplifying Medical, Midwifery, Nurse Practitioner, and Dental education aims to reduce health disparities and improve substance use disorder (SUD) outcomes in Eastern North Carolina by improving access to equitable, evidence-based SUD treatment through implementation of a comprehensive and sustainable academic and regional education program. Eastern North Carolina is a 41-county rural, ethnically diverse, economically distressed, medically underserved region that has been disproportionately impacted by the SUD crisis. ECU-AMMPeD's population of focus is medical, dental, nurse midwife, and nurse practitioner students and regional providers of the same disciplines. Project goals and measurable objectives include 1) increasing the supply of healthcare professionals educated at ECU who can identify and treat SUDs in mainstream healthcare upon graduation by implementing SAMHSA-aligned SUD curricula; 2) increasing the supply of virtual and in-person training sites for students by developing virtual opportunities and relationships with SUD treatment sites in health professions shortage areas; 3) decreasing inequities in SUD treatment access and delivery by providing targeted equity training to students and regional trainees; 4) increasing regional SUD treatment capacity by providing training opportunities to regional providers and sharing material developed with other programs and universities; and 5) insuring sustainability through activities to promote university and community buy-in. ECU-AMMPeD is innovative in its inclusion of medical, dental, certified nurse midwife, and nurse practitioner students. Over 200 student trainees will be served annually (years 1-3), and at least 70 additional regional trainees will be served in years 2 and 3. The ECU-AMMPeD team includes nurse practitioner and dental content experts and a physician board-certified in Addiction Medicine. Together, the team will develop SAMHSA Core Curricular Elements on Substance Use Disorder for Early Academic Career aligned curricula for each discipline and infuse it into the program's general curriculum, with an emphasis on early infusion. Education strategies will include virtual module delivery, in-person lectures, service learning, virtual case studies, clinical shadowing and precepted experiences, and interprofessional education. Five healthcare organizations providing SUD care in health professionals shortage areas have provided Letters of Commitment to offer students real-life clinical learning opportunities. In year 2, regional providers will be offered training and education opportunities. Content will be shared with other ECU programs and other universities to promote SUD content inclusion in their curricula. ECU produces a significant portion of North Carolina's physician, dental, nurse practitioner, and nurse midwife workforce. We are in critical need of SAMHSA funds to support developing the capacity of providers in this region to deliver equitable, stigma-free, evidence-based SUD care.
HHS’ Tracking Accountability in Government Grants System (TAGGS) website provides access to detailed descriptions of grants, loans, aggregated direct payments and other types of financial assistance awarded by the HHS Operating Divisions (OPDIVs) and the Office of the Secretary Staff Divisions (STAFFDIVs).