Our Trainings and Technical Assistance
The Association of Clinicians for the Underserved works tirelessly to achieve health equity for medically under-resourced populations and to support the healthcare workforce providing care to them through trainings and technical assistance. A National Training and Technical Assistance Partner of the Bureau of Primary Health Care, we collaborate with health centers, primary care associations, free clinics, and other organizations across the U.S. through our STAR² Center and other programs.
ACU is proud to offer a variety of free or low-cost trainings, technical assistance, and other resources to assist your organization. From our STAR² Center‘s workforce recruitment and retention-building initiatives to consulting to help your organization better integrate justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion, ACU is here to help. Learn about some of our common training and technical assistance initiatives below and fill out our form to request assistance.
Primary Training and Technical Assistance Areas
Eye Health and Vision Care
With the generous support of our partners, ACU’s Eye Health and Vision Care program works with health centers and other local, state, and national partners to increase access to eye and vision care for underserved populations. With the assistance of our Vision Services Committee consisting of optometrists and health care administrators from across the country, ACU offers free technical assistance to help health centers begin or expand successful and sustainable programs.
Common technical assistance topics include:
- Implementing vision services at health centers, from planning to startup
- Addressing common challenges to sustainability for eye health and vision care programs
- Specialized assistance and further resources in specific optometric topics
Healthcare Workforce Retention and Recruitment
ACU and its Solutions, Training, and Assistance for Recruitment and Retention (STAR²) Center provide resources, training, and technical assistance to help Health Center Program grantees and other organizations with their clinician workforce challenges and questions. We also collaborate regularly with primary care associations and health center-controlled networks. A federally funded National Training and Technical Assistance Partner of the Bureau of Primary Health Care, the STAR² Center can provide many grant-funded services or offer relevant resources free of charge to health centers and look-alikes. ACU also provides further workforce trainings and technical assistance to meet greater needs at a modest fee.
Common training and technical assistance topics include:
- Health center recruitment and retention, including comprehensive workforce plans
- Addressing burnout and moral injury, resiliency, and employee wellness
- Recruitment of clinicians of specific disciplines, including mental health clinicians, support staff, and others
Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion
ACU’s Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI) program is committed to helping health centers and other institutions offer care and create workspaces guided by JEDI principles—from cultural humility to practical accountability. We regularly collaborate with health centers, primary care associations, and other organizations to improve workforce well-being and help address health inequities by reinforcing justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion (JEDI). We provide trainings at a modest cost, and discounted rates are available for ACU Members.
Common training and technical assistance topics include:
- Customized trainings to help your organization reduce unconscious bias and foster inclusion
- Consulting to help leaders overcome JEDI challenges, address organizational needs, and review institutional governance
- Strategic planning facilitation to lead your organization through assessment, planning, and developing a JEDI strategic plan
View our Fee Structure
Suicide Prevention in Primary Care and Health Professionals
ACU’s Suicide Safer Care program assists health centers and other organizations in implementing suicide prevention in primary care and addressing suicide risk in patients and providers. Through the generous funding of our partners, we are able to offer select trainings for free, and other customized trainings and technical assistance are available at a modest cost. Discounted rates are available for ACU Members.
Common training and technical assistance topics include:
- Suicide prevention strategies for primary care providers and their teams, as well as behavioral clinicians
- Organizational approaches to address suicide risk in providers and staff and implement effective postvention
- Specialized topics including pediatric and geriatric suicide prevention
View our Fee Structure and Core Training Descriptions
Other Training and Technical Assistance Areas
Communications and Marketing
Strong, integrated communications and marketing are critical to health centers’ ability to attract and retain quality job candidates, to reach patients with ongoing and emerging services, to develop community support and engagement, and engage in effective nonpartisan advocacy. To help CHCs and other organizations improve their branding and other communications initiatives, ACU offers trainings and technical assistance at a small cost. ACU Members receive significant discounts.
Common training and technical assistance topics include:
- Communications and branding both generally and specifically for health center workforce recruitment and retention
- Best practices in social media to better reach patients, potential providers, and the public
- Storytelling and marketing for outreach, development, and advocacy
Policy and Advocacy
In addition to advocating in support of our nation’s clinical workforce and organizations serving medically under-resourced populations, ACU also assists health centers, PCAs, and other institutions in developing nonpartisan policy analysis and advocacy initiatives that support our shared mission to establish a robust and diverse workforce to help transform communities to achieve health equity for all. Trainings or technical assistance are available at a modest cost, with discounted rates for ACU Members.
Common training and technical assistance topics include:
- Implementing grassroots advocacy and capacity-building
- Federal policy updates with emphasis on workforce programming
- Legal use and permissibility in nonpartisan advocacy for 501c3 nonprofits
