Press Release: February 15, 2010
Coalition Secures Federal Grant to Give Low-Income Health Care Workers Education Options
Hospital workers have a new option to move in to high-demand careers thanks to a newly funded project of the Washington Health Care Worker Training Coalition. The coalition, which includes the Health Work Force Institute, received a $5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Labor to fund the statewide project.
The project provides training for 550 low-wage Washington health care workers across Washington, to move into better paying, high-demand health care professions. As these workers move up, 350 entry-level health care jobs, with opportunities for advancement, will be available.
The project includes three areas of emphasis:
1) Advancing entry-level workers along the nursing pathway, beginning with Certified Nursing Assistants and Medical Assistants through Licensed Practical Nurses and, ultimately, reaching Registered Nurses. The project promises to move hundreds of workers up this high-demand career ladder by recruiting, supporting and training them in a health care setting.
2) Providing jobs in long-term care and creating career transitions to acute care by recruiting and training job seekers in the advanced home care aide apprenticeship, and providing a seamless pathway to acute, hospital health care.
3) Expanding the state’s healthcare educational capacity through workplace learning opportunities, online classes and recruiting more clinical instructors.
The training will be delivered through a combination of online and workplace learning, creating an environment that helps health care workers get the skills they need to advance to a higher level. The state's community and technical colleges will be a major partner in this effort.
The training targets two groups of workers:
1. Low-wage hospital workers who have an interest in health care and willingness to learn, and
2. Long-term care workers who previously have had no pathway to enter higher level health care and hospital work but will now be able to connect to acute care professions.
An important additional beneficiary will be those workers who have yet to be hired, but will fill slots as current workers are trained and reach higher levels in the health care career ladder. The promise of continuing education and career paths that lead to living-wage jobs will help attract and keep these critical frontline workers.
The coalition is a partnership of The Health Work Force Institute, SEIU Healthcare 1199NW Multi-Employer Fund, SEIU Healthcare NW Training Partnership, and the Workforce Training and Education Coordinating Board (Workforce Board). The initiative will operate in nine hospitals in Washington as well as four of the state’s leading home care agencies providing services statewide.” Ten community colleges are participating.
“This amazing partnership achieves a key strategy in our state’s workforce development plan by bringing together resources and support necessary to help working adults overcome obstacles to additional training. This initiative is moving Washington to the forefront of the nation in promoting lifelong learning,” said Eleni Papadakis, executive director of the Workforce Board.
Other quotes as needed:
Jaime Garcia, Executive Director of the Health Work Force Institute
(affiliate of the Washington State Hospital Association):
"We have large current and projected shortages of health care personnel in Washington state. This grant makes it possible for us to tailor our education programs in ways that better serve working adults and help them move into high demand positions."
Diane Sosne, President of SEIU Healthcare 1199NW:
"Through creating new kinds of educational delivery at the workplace, this grant creates a practical and scalable career ladder for working adults seeking greater job security and better incomes. It is exciting to be building on our state’s innovative and successful Hospital Employee Education and Training program."
Charissa Raynor, Executive Director of the SEIU Healthcare NW Training Partnership:
"Washington state is already a long-term care leader with its Advanced Home Care Aide Apprenticeship recently approved by the U.S. Department of Labor. This grant allows us to connect this apprenticeship aimed at long-term care workers, and tie it to a career path that leads to even higher pay in an acute care, hospital setting."
Clytie Causing, Executive Director of the SEIU Healthcare 1199NW Multi-Employer Fund:
“The federal grant provides our state greatly needed resources to train incumbent healthcare workers and to provide training opportunities for those who are interested in healthcare jobs. In these challenging times, we know that training and education are the workers strong assets that will make them marketable.”