Health Careers Access Program (ECSU Program)
The North Carolina Health Careers Access Program (NC-HCAP) is a statewide, inter-institutional organization located on the campus of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Established in 1971 by Dr. Cecil G. Sheps, NC-HCAP was created to help provide a solution to the severe shortage of underrepresented minority health professionals, specifically in underserved rural and inner-city North Carolina communities. For more than 35 years, NC-HCAP has provided programs and services to enhance the representation of minorities in the health professions, serving thousands of students, administrators, advisors, practitioners, community health agencies, and local Area Health Education Centers (AHECs).
Mission
The mission of the North Carolina Health Careers Access Program is to increase the number of underrepresented minorities or economically/educationally disadvantaged students who are trained, educated, and employed in the health professions.
Vision
NC-HCAP envisions a society with equitable access to culturally competent health care across all racial and ethnic groups irrespective of geographic location (urban or rural) or socio-economic status – in short, a society where no health disparities exist.
Health Careers Center
The ECSU Health Resource Center is a health resource services outreach center primarily funded by the North Carolina Health and Wellness Trust and operated by the Department of Health Professions of Elizabeth City State University. The primary objective of the center is the prevention of the onset and progression of diabetes and cardiovascular diseases among at-risk and low-income populations in Pasquotank and surrounding counties of Northeastern North Carolina.