Teaching Health Centers: A New Way Forward in Medical Education

THC Overview

Teaching health centers (THCs) are community-based primary care training programs committed to preparing health professionals to serve the health needs of the community. By moving primary care training into the community, THCs are on the leading edge of innovative educational programming dedicated to ensuring a relevant and sufficient supply of health workforce professionals. Though THCs often collaborate with other health and education organizations to ensure quality training for their students, they maintain the lead role in setting the educational mission and framework for their training programs.

The Affordable Care Act provides GME funding in the form of development grants and payments for THCs to support training programs for primary care residents. Currently, the payment program is funded at $230 million from FY2011 toFY2015. The development grants yet to be funded. Payments are administered by HRSA. For the purposes of this legislation, THCs are defined as primary care residency programs operated by community based, ambulatory patient care centers or by corporate entities such as a GME consortium collaborating with a health center and a hospital. To qualify for THC funding under the ACA, the health center or consortium must be accredited as the sponsoring institution for the residency program.

THC Resources

THC Resources - a collection of resources related to THCs, including literature, briefs, and conference materials

HRSA Teaching Health Centers Site

Full List of THCs - This is a growing list of both self-identified THCs and HRSA-funded THCs, and is intended to serve as a resource for students, educators, and policy makers. Programs are added based on self identification as a THC. If you are a community based ambulatory patient care site operating a primary care training program, please send your information to contact@medicaleducationfutures.org, and we will add your program to the list.