After a national search, Becky Reamey, Ph.D., has been promoted to Director of the Alabama AHEC Network.
Reamey first joined the Alabama Area Health Education Centers (AHEC) Network in late 2021, initially as the Associate Director and later as Interim Director. She has a deep passion for education, research, and workforce development.
Reamey holds a Ph.D. in Higher Education from The University of Alabama, with an emphasis on student development with interest in leadership and workforce development. Her postdoctoral appointment was at the Center for Community-Based Partnerships in the Division of Community Affairs at UA. She also earned a master’s degree in communication management from UAB.
In her time with Alabama AHEC, Reamey has been responsible for managing and directing the program and creating initiatives to train, retain, and maintain a health care workforce in rural Alabama. Most recently, she has spearheaded efforts to rebuild our statewide network by identifying and onboarding three new Centers.
“I have witnessed firsthand the lack of health care in rural areas and the dire situations created with a lack of health care. I have taken students across the state into areas with conditions they only think exist in third world countries. To know these public health issues exist just down the road and to do nothing to alter the conditions is inconceivable," Reamey explained. "I am honored to serve the citizens of Alabama in working with rural and underserved communities to recruit, train, and retain a health care workforce to improve health outcomes.
“HRSA had the forethought to develop the Area Health Education Centers (AHEC) grant for cultivating a health care workforce in rural areas. With support from the state of Alabama and UAB, our passionate team is able to connect existing programs and bridge gaps to have a greater impact on the communities we live, work and play.”
Under Reamey’s leadership, the organization plans to expand programs that encourage students from rural and underserved areas to pursue careers in health care, starting as early as middle school. The Alabama AHEC Network will also work to grow and diversify funding, leverage resources to multiply statewide impact and ensure sustainability, and build out a more robust community health worker program. Additionally, they are committed to increasing awareness and understanding of AHEC, while strengthening community partnerships to elevate the organization’s recognition and influence.
"Becky has done an incredible job with the Alabama AHEC Network, building connections at the state and national levels that enrich workforce development and help fill critical gaps in our state’s health care education, clinical practices, and research network," said Irfan Asif, MD, chair of the UAB Department of Family and Community Medicine and associate dean for primary care and rural health. "Alabama AHEC is a valuable part of the state and the mission of UAB. It plays a pivotal role in creating a funnel of health care professionals that will ultimately address some of the major health care issues found in our state."
The Alabama AHEC Network is dedicated to recruiting, training, and retaining the Alabama healthcare workforce while expanding variety among health professionals, broadening the distribution of the health workforce, enhancing the quality of care, and improving health care delivery to rural an underserved populations in Alabama. There are five federally funded HRSA AHEC Programs and nationally recognized centers as part of the Alabama AHEC Network: North Alabama AHEC, East Central Alabama AHEC, Black Belt Alabama AHEC, Wiregrass Alabama AHEC, and Delta Alabama AHEC.