Family, Friend, and Neighbor care represents one of the most widely used forms of child care, yet it is frequently excluded from policy conversations and funding priorities. FFN childcare is not just a preference; it is a form of community resilience in the face of constrained resources that supports child welfare and education, allows parents to stay in the workforce, and creates jobs within the community. As sustaining resources for our communities, FFN providers must be supported with the tools, resources, and investments they need to thrive while exploring strategies to navigate the larger concerns of our childcare shortage. The Western North Carolina Family, Friend, and Neighbor (FFN) research project, a partnership between the  NC Center for Health and Wellness(NCCHW) at UNC Asheville  and Smart Start of Transylvania County, provides critical insight into one frequently overlooked component of our regional infrastructure.

The University of North Carolina Asheville hosted the fourth annual WNC Health Policy Initiative Legislative Summit on Friday, March 13, 2026. The theme of this year’s summit was “The Changing Landscape of Health in Western North Carolina,” and featured welcoming remarks from WNC HPI founding partners and NC Lt. Gov. Rachel Hunt, a keynote address from Laurie Stradley, CEO of Impact Health, and a policy maker panel comprised of state legislators and other state-level health leadership discussing the current health policy landscape, challenges, and opportunities facing the region and the state.

On Oct 4th, Dogwood Health Trust announced more than $30 million dollars in initial funding for Hurricane Helene relief efforts in Western North Carolina to support deployment of resources and response to urgent needs, assessment, navigation and legal services associated with FEMA response and maintaining critical health services across the region.

North Carolina, like the rest of the United States, is facing a massive healthcare workforce shortage. With the state in need of nurses, caregivers, behavioral health specialists, physicians, and public health workers, a number of initiatives across the state are seeking to increase our healthcare workforce. 

While some collaborations are looking big picture…in WNC…other initiatives are exposing students to the healthcare field and are building pathways for those students to enter that workforce. One program led by the North Carolina Center for Health & Wellness (NCCHW), Mountain Area Health Education Center (MAHEC), and the Dogwood Health Trust, in partnership with a number of universities in that region, have connected students to the critical field of healthcare with the Student Health Ambassador (SHA) program.