About Us
The University of Arizona Pediatric Pulmonary Center (UAPPC) is part of a national network of health care training programs funded by the Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB) of the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) to enhance care for children with chronic pulmonary diseases such as asthma, neuromuscular diseases, and cystic fibrosis.
Established in 2000, the UAPPC is focused on building the capacity of health care providers to serve children with special health care needs throughout HRSA Region IX, which includes Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada, and numerous Pacific Ocean island communities.
The UAPPC seeks to build the skills of a broad range of health care providers – doctors, nurses, pharmacists, social workers and nutritionists – to care for these children and their families in a coordinated, interdisciplinary manner. The Center’s faculty provides academic and clinical training to advanced degree health sciences students, in-service education to medical professionals throughout Region IX, and skill-building support to parents of children with special health care needs
All MCHB training programs aim to promote comprehensive, coordinated, family centered, and culturally sensitive systems of health care that serve the diverse needs of all families within their communities.
The University of Arizona Pediatric Pulmonary Center is committed to creating and sustaining a culture of diversity, equity, and inclusion throughout our interdisciplinary training and clinical missions. We believe that differences in race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexuality, cultural heritage, religion and spirituality, physical and intellectual abilities, and life experiences among our trainees, staff and faculty contribute positively to all dimensions of the Pediatric Pulmonary Center.
We recognize the value and richness added to our traineeship and patient care when our team and trainees are individuals from diverse backgrounds and life experiences. We support diverse and underrepresented trainees and faculty, and continually strive to increase our cultural literacy and skills to address health disparities in underserved communities.
We work diligently to create an environment in which our faculty, trainees, and patients feel safe, empowered, and supported to reach their full potential.
National Goals of the Pediatric Pulmonary Centers
- To provide interdisciplinary leadership training at the graduate and post-graduate levels in pediatric pulmonary medicine, nursing, nutrition and social work plus pharmacy to prepare health professionals to effectively care for children with chronic respiratory disease.
- To engage with families as full partners to support family-centered practice, policies, and research serving children and youth with special health care needs.
- To increase access to health services through innovative methods such as telehealth, collaborative systems of care, and distance learning modalities.
- To provide technical assistance, consultation, continuing education (CE), and subject matter expertise to facilitate academic-practice partnerships.
- To support diverse and underrepresented trainees and faculty, and increase the cultural competence and skills of trainees and faculty to address health disparities in underserved communities.
