Health Careers Access Program (ECSU Program)

The North Carolina Health Careers Access Program (NC-HCAP) is a statewide, inter-institutional organization located on the campus of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Established in 1971 by Dr. Cecil G. Sheps, NC-HCAP was created to help provide a solution to the severe shortage of underrepresented minority health professionals, specifically in underserved rural and inner-city North Carolina communities. For more than 35 years, NC-HCAP has provided programs and services to enhance the representation of minorities in the health professions, serving thousands of students, administrators and advisors, practitioners, community health agencies and local Area Health Education Centers (AHECs).

Mission

The mission of the North Carolina Health Careers Access Program is to increase the number of underrepresented minorities or economically/educationally disadvantaged students who are trained, educated, and employed in the health professions.

Vision

NC-HCAP envisions a society with equitable access to culturally competent healthcare across all racial and ethnic groups irrespective of geographic location (urban or rural) or socio-economic status – in short, a society where no health disparities exist.