Fresno State received a $1.4 million federal grant to strengthen the Central Valley’s healthcare workforce and expand access to care through technology-based training and collaboration.
The university is one of 10 nationwide grant recipients selected for the Health Resources and Services Administration’s Technology-Enabled Collaborative Learning Program. The grant will support the Central Valley Digital Health Collaborative Learning Network – known as CV Connect – in Fresno, Kings, Tulare and Madera counties. The project will focus on chronic disease prevention and management, as well as mental health and substance use disorders.
Fresno State’s Center for Digital and Technological Innovation in Healthcare will lead the project in collaboration with the Department of Physical Therapy, Department of Social Work Education and School of Nursing, all within the College of Health and Human Services.
Dr. Nupur Hajela, the center’s director, serves as principal investigator, and Dr. Marcus Crawford, the center’s associate director, serves as co-principal investigator. Other members of the project leadership team are Dr. Jennifer Adame-Walker (Department of Physical Therapy), Dr. Emanuel Alcala (Central Valley Health Policy Institute) and Dr. Anahit Hovhannisyan (Center for Digital and Technological Innovation in Healthcare).
“This grant is very significant for Fresno State because it establishes our university as a regional hub for digital health and artificial intelligence-related healthcare possibilities,” Hajela said. “It showcases our capacity and expertise in these fields and strengthens our ability to bring more resources to the Central Valley. It will also help us build the infrastructure needed to meet the region’s future healthcare needs.”
CV Connect will link healthcare providers in the Central Valley who serve rural and medically underserved communities with Fresno State faculty and medical specialists for training, case-based discussions and consultation. The initiative aims to retain providers, reduce burnout and expand digital health tools to address limited access to specialty, chronic and behavioral care.
The program will offer 14 virtual sessions using the ECHO model — Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes — and two in-person workshops along with mobile health unit-based community outreach to rural and medically underserved populations. A physician specialist and a team of healthcare professionals will lead the virtual case discussions. The workshops will provide hands-on training in using healthcare technology to address challenges in communities facing workforce shortages and barriers to care.
“Think of it as a digital health learning ecosystem,” Crawford said. “Through CV Connect, Fresno State will strengthen connections among academic programs, healthcare providers, technology partners and communities while developing a future-ready healthcare workforce equipped to serve rural and medically underserved populations.”
The network brings together clinical, academic and technology partners from across the region. Clinical partners include Valley Children’s Healthcare, Camarena Health, Fresno Long-term Care Medical Group and SJ Hands on Physical Therapy. California Health Sciences University serves as the academic partner, while UCSF Fresno, Community Health Partners and Saint Agnes Medical Center contribute subject-matter expertise. Technology partners include Health Tequity, Immergo Labs and Neuro Rehab VR.
The three-year grant provides $475,000 annually. Over this period, center faculty fellows will launch an artificial intelligence in healthcare certificate program, mentor students in emerging health technology and offer paid student research positions.
Additional faculty contributing to the project include:
- Dr. Na-hyeon (Hannah) Ko, Department of Physical Therapy.
- Dr. Leslie Zarrinkhameh, Department of Physical Therapy.
- Dr. Deborah Walker, Department of Physical Therapy.
- Dr. Daniel Barrows, Department of Physical Therapy.
- Dr. Harkirat Bal, School of Nursing.
