Central Louisiana students will soon have a new resource to pursue health care careers
To address the growing need for health care workers, Louisiana Central is creating a network to guide teachers, students and parents to jobs and educational opportunities available in Central Louisiana.
Healthcare Career Central will be be the place for students, parents and school personnel can go to get the information they need and for medical facilities to get the word out about their own opportunities, organizers say.
“There’s a health care worker shortage everywhere, not just in Central Louisiana," said Jim Clinton, president and CEO of Louisiana Central, an economic development group that serves a 10-parish region. "Getting into the schools is important to show what kinds of careers are out there, the salaries and the job satisfaction, making a contribution to quality of life.”
The Rapides Foundation’s Future of HealthC.A.R.E Program awarded Louisiana Central a three-year $600,000 grant to create Healthcare Career Central. The foundation's program seeks to increase the number of qualified Central Louisiana students enrolling in training or entering the health care workforce.
The Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana Foundation also made a grant to Louisiana Central for $155,000. The grant will be used to provide technical assistance and training for employers, educators and counselors who are exposing students to health-care careers.
Louisiana Central is now working to hire a director for the program, said Lafe Jones, vice president and executive director of industry relations.
A website is also being created that will be a central clearinghouse where students, parents and school personnel can find out about programs and learn more about health care careers.
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Sara Stokes, vice president of human resources at Rapides Regional Medical Center, said a variety of jobs are available for students to consider, including licensed practical nurses, medical technicians, phlebotomists and respiratory therapists. There are also non-clinical jobs like housekeepers, food service workers and maintenance staff.
"It takes a variety of talents to make a hospital successful, and we want them to know early on we are supportive of hiring locally, training and establishing support for when they are in the workforce," said Julie Hollingsworth, director of marketing, strategy and communication at CHRISTUS St. Frances Cabrini Hospital. "Most people know it takes doctors and nurses to take care of the sick, but we want to expose these kids to the wide variety of jobs available in health care, from finance to engineering to environmental services to communications."
More than 500 jobs are open in Central Louisiana in hospitals, clinics and in the private sector, and there are not enough nurses to meet demand, Hollingsworth said.
"That’s why we are partnering with Louisiana Central, the local universities as well as local high schools to increase the number of health care workers graduating each year," she said. "We are offering scholarships for health-related fields, incentive programs for those entering the workforce, summer intern programs for high school students. And we are working to implement high-school-based certification programs for CNAs and EMTs so students can immediately enter the workforce after graduating high school. If they choose to pursue further education, these high school programs will help them earn credit hours for larger health care degrees while still in school to shorten their college time."
To learn more, visit Louisiana Central online at louisiana-central.com.
This article originally appeared on Alexandria Town Talk: New program will link Central Louisiana students with health care jobs
