Clare Payne said “you can get a job anywhere,” talking about one of the many ways the Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) course at Fannin County High School (FCHS) has helped her.
Payne was one of the 13 participants in the course who took the state test to become certified CNAs in December, passed, and are now listed on the Georgia Registry as certified CNAs.
The training has already resulted in jobs for four of the students. Julie Biddy is working at PruittHealth in Blue Ridge, Devan Hogsed and Michael Treon have both been hired at Blue Ridge Assisted Living, and Riley Reeves will start at Chatuge Regional Hospital in March.
All the participants in the CNA class are seniors completing the Nursing Pathway at FCHS.
Anne Gibbs, the class instructor, said the FCHS CNA course is certified by the state and includes 24 hours of clinical work in the field. The Fannin students completed those hours at Blue Ridge Assisted Living. This provided them “actual healthcare experience,” Gibbs said.
The students shared their thoughts on the class and their clinical experience last week.
They talked about training they received, both in classroom labs and working in the field. They agreed that hands-on learning was best for them.
Their clinical experience strengthened classroom instructions and a lot more.
Julie Biddy was glad the students experienced “a lot of hands on things.”
Reeves said of Blue Ridge Assisted Living, “We were nervous at first...it’s so easy...you just love those people.”
Ivy Hyde agreed, talking about some of the “when I was your age” tales students heard.
The interaction “helped us know” that health care is the right field of choice, Reeves said.
“I didn’t realize the compassion” the work requires, Devan Hogsed said.
“Overall, we had a good experience,” Hyde said and Reeves credited the staff. “The staff was great,” she said.
Gibbs said, “They all grew,” from the experience.
Not one of the students said the experience had turned them away from health care.
Cindy Querry, senior lifestyle counselor at Blue Ridge Assisted Living, was just as impressed with the students as the students were with their experiences.
“They did a wonderful job...they were very hands on,” Querry said.
The staff wasted no time putting the students to work, which proved they were “just exactly what you want in young people today working with our industry,” Querry said.
The clinical progam was, “A great experience for everybody,” Querry said.
And the students saw the importance of the CNA program to their future. Besides Payne’s confidence that “you can get a job anywhere,” Michael Treon echoed, “It looks really good on a resume.”
Hogsed is looking to her immediate future after graduation. “I can work in college,” she said.
Lucas Roof, the school system’s chief academic officer who serves as the Career, Technical and Agricultural Education director, said, “I am very proud of Mrs. Gibbs and our CNA program. It provides students with real world experience and a credential they can use to propel them to success i the field of healthcare.”
The program is expected to help fill the local need for health care workers as the students finish their education. About half of those who talked about the program said they see their future here.