WHO WE ARE

ARIZONA ALLIANCE FOR COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS

ARIZONA’S PRIMARY CARE ALLIANCE

The Arizona Alliance for Community Health Centers (AACHC) has served as Arizona’s Primary Care Association (PCA) since 1985 and strives to promote and facilitate the development and delivery of affordable and accessible community-oriented, high quality, culturally effective primary care healthcare for everyone in the state of Arizona through advocacy, education, and technical assistance.

AACHC is committed to serving as a resource for organizations providing primary health care to the underserved, including Health Center Program Grantees, Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) Look-Alikes, Rural Health Clinics, Tribal organizations, behavioral health facilities, and others with a vested interest in the primary care safety net. AACHC comprises the state’s largest network of primary care providers and is committed to working with a variety of partners to expand the availability of tools that health centers and organizations serving those in need can utilize to address the needs of their patient populations and improve the health outcomes while continuing to demonstrate cost savings.

AACHC also has strong local, state, regional, and federal partners with which it leverages resources to accomplish goals. AACHC provides a variety of educational opportunities for members, including peer networking committees, which provide a forum for sharing of best practices among member colleagues for optimal healthcare delivery. “America’s health centers are essential to producing results on our actionable public health challenges, like HIV/AIDS and the opioid crisis, as well as to building a healthcare system that delivers better value and puts the patient at the center.”

- Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar, August 20, 2019

AACHC STAFF

John C. McDonald, RN, MS, CPHQ, Chief Executive Officer Allen Gjersvig, MS, Director of Outreach and Enrollment Services Da-Nell Pedersen, Director of Clinical Programs Dorothy Hastings, Women’s Health and Compliance Standards Manager Emily Oake, MHSM, Director of Special Populations and Population Health Erika Mach, Public Affairs and Communications Manager Frances Kaplan, Grants and Contracts Manager Ginny Roberts, Senior Director of Clinical Programs Jan Grutzius, RDH, Oral Health Manager Janeth Gamez, MA, Front Desk Administrative Support Joanna Garrison, Senior Accountant Karen Hardy, Controller Karey Lyn Maciha, Health Center Enrollment and Outreach Coordinator Kat Bergman, Director of Human Resources Kathy Tremonto, Executive Assistant to the CEO Lainie Plattner, Quality Improvement Manager Leah Meyers, MSW, Director of Arizona Rural Women’s Health Network Lisa Nieri, MS, Senior Director of Health Center Development Lourdes Montéz, Workforce, CAAHEC Health Professions Education Program Manager Lorraine Ramirez, MPH, Arizona Rural Women’s Health Network Coordinator Marni Rawiszer, MPH, Outreach and Development Program Manager, CAAHEC Meredith Foulds, Training and Technical Assistance Coordinator Meryl Deles, MSW, Navigator Coordinator Patricia Macias, Administrative Assistant Sean Clendaniel, MPH, Director of CAAHEC Shelli Ross, Senior Director of Operations and Trainings Suzanne Gilbert, CPA, CGMA, Chief Financial Officer Tara McCollum Plese, MPA, Chief External Affairs Officer Vanessa Stoll, Continuing Education Coordinator, CAAHEC Victoria Burns, Director of Financial Analysis and Reimbursement