Hawaii State Loan Repayment Program

Kelley Withy, MD, PhD

Program Director withy@hawaii.edu (808) 692-1060

Hawai‘i State Loan Repayment Program

TheHawai‘i/PacificBasinAreaHealthEducationCenterispleasedtoannouncethe Hawai‘iStateLoanRepaymentProgram(SLRP), agrant fundedunderthePatient ProtectionandAffordableCareActof2010.TheSLRPoffersprimarycareand behavioral health providers up to $40,000 a year in loan repayment to provide care at designated Health Professional Shortage Areas in Hawai‘i (HPSA).

Selected health care professionals are obligated to commit to at least 2 years of service at a public or non-profit private entity located and providing health services in a HPSA. In addition to caring for the community they serve;recipients are involved with work forcedevelopmentactivitiessuchastrainingandmentoring.

The SLRP will improve the number of primary care and behavioral health care providers in medically underserved areas of Hawai‘i and improve the retention of health care providers by decreasing the burden of debt. Such debt may prevent future doctors from choosing primary care or behavioral health careers in underserved areas. But no longer!

A total of 60 health care providers have taken advantage of this program to date. Currently there are 26 active loan re-payers in underserved areas of Hawai‘i. Of the program graduates, 63% are still working where they did their commitment and 83% remain working in Hawaii.

Who’s Eligible?

• Physicians (Family Medicine, General

Pediatrics, General Internal Medicine,

Obstetrics/ Gynecology, Geriatrics, Psychiatry) • Primary Care or Behavioral Health Nurse

Practitioners, Registered Nurses, Nurse

Midwives & Physician Assistants • HealthServicePsychologists • Licensed Clinical Social Workers • Licensed Professional Counselors and

Marriage and Family Therapists • Dentists, Pharmacists, Certified Substance

Abuse Counselors

Partners

In order to accomplish our goals, the Hawai‘i /Pacific Basin 20 undergraduate schools and 6 graduate schools including AHECenjoyspartnershipswith63elementaryandhighschools, includingtheUH Nancy Atmospera-Walch School of Nursing, SocialWork, Psychology, and the Department of Public Health Sciences and College of Education.

Additional partners include: 23 CHCs, the Hawai‘i Primary Care Association, the Hawai‘i Department of Labor, the HRSA regional office, NIH, the Hawai‘i State Rural Health Association, the Hawai‘i Department of Education, Papa Ola Lokahi, the Native Hawaiian Center of Excellence, Pacific Island Health Officers’ Association (PIHOA), Imi Ho‘ola Program, Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA) Health Careers Opportunity Program (HCOP) and the Hawai‘i Public Health Association.