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HACC’s Nurse Aide Program Resumes
HACC’s Nurse Aide Program Resumes
The demand for well-trained direct healthcare workers in the Central Pennsylvania region existed prior to the onset of COVID-19, but with the virus affecting many direct healthcare givers, that need has significantly increased. In order to protect their vulnerable residents, nursing homes were forced to ban “visitors” from their premises, and unfortunately, that prevented classes like HACC’s 120-hour nurse aide program from running, as students must complete a clinical experience in a nursing home setting at the conclusion of their training class.
For approximately two months, nurse aide classes across the Commonwealth (including the HACC program) were put on pause. Through a COVID-19 exemption process provided by Governor Wolf’s administration, HACC received approval to resume nurse aide training with certain conditions in place, e.g. following COVID-19 mitigation measures established by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the PA Department of Health, and with the facility’s approval. On Monday, May 18, 2020, six Maple Farm Nursing Center employees and their HACC nurse aide instructor, Penny Zercher, RN (also a Maple Farm employee) started the first HACC nurse aide class since the virus’ PA arrival in mid-March and it will conclude the second week of June. Maple Farm is located in Akron (Lancaster County), PA.
As Pennsylvania carefully reopens each county, HACC’s nurse aide staff and our nursing home partners are excited to resume previously postponed classes at locations where training and/or clinicals are permitted. Students who were displaced from HACC nurse aide classes because of COVID-19 will be given the first opportunity to attend the next available training class in their area.
Wastewater Treatment Operators
Wastewater Treatment Operators
Environmental science classes in manufacturing? That’s correct, HACC’s Manufacturing Department offers training to aspiring wastewater treatment operators, a highly skilled position that is classified as both manufacturing work as well as an environmental job. Meet Theresa Alberici, a 30-year veteran in the practical application of environmental science education, outreach and training. Theresa is pictured here in the natural environment where our waste must eventually return.
Carpentry Classes for High School Seniors
Carpentry Classes for High School Seniors
For graduating high school seniors interested in pursuing careers in carpentry, instructor Walter Freeburn made a dramatic shift from in-person shop classes where students worked to learn the fundamentals of using hammers, nails, saws and wood to online Zoom sessions. For carpentry. The sudden and unexpected shift demanded learning the use of new technology, new ways of explaining and demonstrating concepts, and new ways of keeping students engaged. Now that construction has restarted and the class has finished, we will work to place students and may still find creative ways to use Zoom to engage with and connect our graduates with recruiting employers in a safe and healthy manner.
Contact Tracer Training Program
Contact Tracer Training Program
Contact tracing is a public health strategy that has been used for decades to prevent the spread of infectious diseases such as tuberculosis (TB), human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and now COVID-19. According to the National Association of County and City Health Officials, 15 health workers per 100,000 people is a baseline number needed during normal times, and during a pandemic, this number should double to 30 contact tracers per 100,000 people.
In-demand jobs within major medical systems await the graduates of HACC’s 45-hour, 4-week Contact Tracer Training Program that launches in June and blends remote, live Zoom sessions and online instruction in the D2L learning management system. The program aligns with recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and PA Department of Health and was developed in consultation with Srikanta (Sri) Banerjee, M.D., Ph.D., of Lancaster, a Johns Hopkins University-trained epidemiologist and a nationally certified public health consultant.
For more information, contact Abigail Peslis, alpeslis@hacc.edu or by clicking here.
First Responder Training
First Responder Training
Some in-person programs resumed at PSC over the past few weeks, allowing the Police Academy and Fire Academy to resume in-person instruction. These are just a few pictures of students who endured the pandemic and continue to train, in order to be ready to be on the front lines of public safety.
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