VA San Diego Celebrates VA’s Health Professions Education Week
VA San Diego Healthcare System celebrates VA Health Professions Education Week, March 13-17, to recognize the contributions of VA faculty and academic partners. Every year, the VA trains more than 113,000 future health professionals to provide state-of-the-art health care to our nation’s Veterans.
VA’s health professions education programs enhance the quality of and timely access to care provided to Veterans at the VA. Overseen by the Office of Academic Affiliations (OAA), health professions trainees (HPTs) participate in over 7,000 wide-ranging training programs offered at 150 VA healthcare facilities, making VA the nation’s largest provider of health professions training. Health professions education in VA is conducted through long-standing partnerships with 1,400 U.S. academic institutions, including 99% of the nation’s medical schools.
Academic affiliations are vital in meeting Veteran health care. VA San Diego partners with over 300 academic medical institutions around the nation. VA San Diego trains approximately 1800 health profession trainees annually in various disciplines through these partnerships.
“There is no greater mission than to serve those who have served in the US Military and who have taken the world on their shoulders to pay for our freedom,” said VA San Diego Director Dr. Frank Pearson. He continues, “To that end, I am proud to say that 70% of America’s past and future healthcare providers have benefited from the training and experience working with Veterans in the VA. We are extremely grateful for the health profession trainees and the purpose they serve in fostering the mission of the VA.” VA San Diego Chief of Staff Dr. Kathleen Kim adds, “With the help of our health profession trainees, we provide excellent, high-quality healthcare to Veterans every day. We thank them for taking care of VA San Diego’s Veterans.”
Offering training in more than 60 clinical disciplines, VA San Diego educates future audiologists, chaplains, dentists, occupational therapists, optometrists, orthoptists-prosthetists, pharmacists, physicians, psychologists, dietician nutritionists, nurses, social workers, and speech pathologists to name a few. Over 15,000 of VA’s HPTs come from Minority Serving Institutions, such as Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs), Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), and Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities. HPTs support VA’s ability to deliver and sustain high-quality patient care to Veterans.
“OAA is honored to highlight the invaluable contributions our health professions trainees make every day in providing care to our Veterans,” said Marjorie Bowman, MD, MPA, Chief Academic Affiliations Officer. “VA is fortunate to have more than 1,400 academic affiliates who share our theme: passion to learn, power to heal. The academic affiliation partnership model is vital to training future health professionals who care for our Veterans and the Nation.”
Learn more about VA’s Health Professions Education Week and VA’s health professions training programs by visiting the OAA website or by watching this brief introductory video.