Workforce Pilot Produces 40% Increase in Training Reach

Sixty percent of respondents to a McKinsey & Company survey listed “clinical support staff coverage” as an enduring pandemic challenge. Workforce limitations – including both nursing and support staff – prompted 58% of respondents to adjust patient care models and 48% to accept fewer patients. Those responses are bad news for quality healthcare access, which is why the Primary Care Coalition (PCC) and our Nexus Montgomery Regional Partnership (Nexus Montgomery) partners have made rebuilding local healthcare workforce capacity a priority. 

In Fiscal Year 2023, we launched a pilot project with the American Muslim Senior Society (AMSS) to expand their existing training program with support from WorkSource Montgomery. AMSS launched its healthcare workforce training program after realizing that many of the seniors it serves through its meal delivery program also need home health care options, particularly from people who can meet their cultural and linguistic needs.  

The program recruits un- and under-employed young adults in our county to train as entry-level health care workers capable of serving our diverse population. It’s a win-win for patients, the health care system, and community members--providing culturally appropriate patient care, saving health care systems the premium they often pay agencies to fill their staffing gaps, and offering workers a pathway to long-term health care careers.  

During the pilot period, PCC and AMSS were able to train 68 people in technical health care roles, resulting in 19 certified nursing assistants (CNAs), 16 certified in other allied health care roles, and eight people employed as certified nursing assistants by the end of the project period. WorkSource funding supported 29 of the 68 people trained, increasing the program’s capacity by more than 40%. The pilot continues in this fiscal year, with a goal of training 15 more CNAs and 10 more certified medical technicians by December 2023.