Four-States InfoSystems: AHEC-SW Health Information Network will design and implement a communications system for sharing health information resources and transfer of health information to underserved rural and inner city-urban populations in the Four-States Region. Area Health Education Center-Southwest (AHEC-SW) is an extension of the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) and is located in Texarkana (population 61,230). The Arkansas/Texas state line runs through the middle of the city and Louisiana and Oklahoma are only 30 to 40 miles away. The city is a hub for comprehensive medical care of the Four-States Region. AHEC-SW's Library, the largest Medical Library between Little Rock and Dallas, provides relevant and timely biomedical information to health professionals and students. The Medical Library is geographically and strategically situated to provide outreach services in the neighboring counties. Objective 1: To establish Internet connectivity and online access to NLM databases and programs for practicing health professionals and healthcare professions students in 28 hospitals, community health clinics, junior colleges, and public health units in the 19-county Four-States Region. Objective 2: To provide access to health information for 6,300 underserved and disadvantaged urban and rural patients per year at AHEC Family Clinic, and to the regional rural population by planning and creating a Consumer Health Library with books, video tapes, patient information from Medline Plus, and stationary and mobile kiosks. The two objectives are related by offering health information access to three distinct groups: health care providers, health professions students, and patients.
