O.T. doctorate--the UAA-Creighton connection.

AuthorBohi, Heidi
PositionEDUCATION: SIDEBAR

As part of the University of Alaska's continuing efforts to reduce the shortage of health care professionals statewide, it recently partnered with Creighton University to launch a distance-learning program aimed at addressing the state's critical shortage of occupational therapists.

In Alaska, students must attend out-of-state schools to earn degrees in such fields as occupational therapy, physical therapy and pharmacy. A 2007 study by the Alaska Center for Rural Health determined Alaska faces a "perfect storm" in its struggle to meet the health needs of its residents, due to an aging population, a lack of health professionals, and the state's unique geography. Once they leave Alaska, most do not return after graduating, according to the study, thus increasing the ever-widening gap in accessibility to services. Although shortages in many health care fields are listed in the report, the area with the greatest shortage is rehabilitation, specifically occupational therapy.

The partnership between Creighton, a Jesuit Catholic university in Omaha, Neb., and the University of Alaska Anchorage resulted from Cheryl Easley, dean of the UAA College of Health and Social Welfare, discussing the idea with an associate professor of occupational therapy at Creighton who she knows from a previous professional affiliation. Creighton, which offers the only accredited distance-education degree for doctor of pharmacy candidates, wanted to adapt that model for other health professions.

"This partnership responds to the lack of educational opportunity for occupational therapists in Alaska and the shortage of them available to practice in this state," Easley said. "The distance-delivered program Creighton offers increases the likelihood that the graduates will remain in Alaska to work."

If the program is successful, it...

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