Nearly 75 people have become certified nursing assistants (CNAs) at Northeast Florida State Hospital in Macclenny, Florida thanks to training funding provided through CareerSource Northeast Florida (CareerSource NEFL).
The 600-plus bed hospital has provided continuous service to persons with severe and persistent mental illness since 1959 – one of three state-owned facilities providing inpatient psychiatric care and treatment to individuals in Florida.
“With CareerSource Northeast Florida partnering with us, we’ve been able to help quite a few people obtain their CNAs since we partnered with their customized training program two years ago,” said John Gainey, the hospital’s senior registered nurse supervisor who oversees nursing education. “We know this type of career development is important.”
Sonya Speights, CareerSource NEFL Director of Training and Career Pathways, says customized training is designed to meet the unique training needs of an employer or group of employers.
“It’s truly employer-driven, where the employer decides who will provide the training, what program of study will be used, and which employees will be trained,” Speights said. “Employees benefit by learning new skills and retaining employment after successful training completion. Customized training is a win-win for both employer and employee.”
CareerSource NEFL Healthcare Sector Manager Carol Cullen says customized training is offered to employers such as Northeast Florida State Hospital to meet specific training needs of existing employees as it relates to the introduction of new technologies, new production or service procedures, workplace literacy, or helping employees upgrade to new jobs that require additional skills.
“When a customized training program is approved, we will reimburse the employer for a percentage of the total training costs,” Cullen said. “Most employers fall under one of the ‘high-demand’ sector industries, which includes healthcare and manufacturing/aviation, logistics/transportation and finance/information technology. However, other industries may apply and may be approved for training funds.”
At the hospital, each CNA participant completes a 120-hour program that’s completed in about eight weeks. The program includes 80 hours of classroom-led instruction followed by a minimum of 40 hours of clinical and a skills lab.
“We have a skills lab here where they start with the basics like proper hand washing then on to providing bed baths, foot care, and hand and nail care,” Gainey said. “There are a total of 24 skills in the check-off to complete the program. We try to do four classes a year with 12 people per class…and we did two additional classes last year thanks to the customized training funds we received. We’ve completed eight classes so far and are in our ninth class now. We’re very appreciative of what CareerSource NEFL has done in offering this assistance for us.”
So are many of the CNA program participants.
After hospital employees receive their licenses, having a CNA certification allows them to move up at the hospital with a pay increase and allows them to work directly with patients at nursing homes and hospitals.
Janna Dixon, a records technician at the hospital, received her CNA certification through the program in March.
Born and raised in Baker County, Dixon joined the staff at the Northeast Florida State Hospital in 2020.
“I always just wanted to be a nurse, but never had the opportunity to actually quit work and go forward with the necessary education,” Dixon said. “When I came here, they really pushed continuing education. I knew they had the CNA program that John was leading. On a whim, I asked my supervisor if that was something I would be allowed to do since I wasn’t actually in a direct-care staff position – and she said ‘absolutely.’”
Although she “was pretty nervous” because she had not worked on a unit that worked with patients every day, Dixon started working on weekends just to be in that kind of role at the hospital.
“I loved the teachers here…they were very patient; they let you practice and train as often as you wanted,” she said. “Even on your days off, you could come up here and learn as much as you wanted to. They’re also very supportive in encouraging you to move further up in the profession.”
And that’s what Dixon is doing now – applying for a program to receive certification as a Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) through a program offered at North Florida Technical College in Starke.
She hopes CareerSource NEFL, through its Individual Training Account (ITA) program, may also help with a scholarship.
ITAs, which are sometimes referred to as training scholarships, vouchers, or stipends, provide eligible job seekers a choice and the support training that leads to an in-demand job.
Currently, Dixon plans to continue working at the hospital.
“It’s a good feeling to be able to interact directly with patients now and help where I can,” she said.
Cheyanna Fussell, who has worked at the hospital for 10 years, recently completed the CNA program and is currently in training for an LPN license.
“When I first started in 2012, the hospital did offer a CNA program that was locally funded,” Fussell said. “I applied then, but they discontinued the program that same year. I stayed on and worked on the ward for a while, supervising the living area staff for a whole unit. But I was excited when they brought the program back through the connection with CareerSource.”
Now in classes to complete her LPN certification, she says the CNA program gave her a way to progress in the healthcare profession.
With the shortage of nurses in Florida and healthcare professionals in general, Cullen says customized training can help employers like Northeast Florida State Hospital become a pipeline to help more people attain the necessary certifications to fill the void.
“This is among the many programs CareerSource NEFL offers to employers, including involvement in virtual job fairs, facilitating in-person job fairs at our facilities, and other support to help them find workers, ” Cullen said. “In this case, our customized training dollars have given the hospital a chance to upskill their current employees so we can have the healthcare workers we need now and in the future.”
CareerSource NEFL Supports New Nursing Certifications at Northeast Florida State Hospital
Nearly 75 people have become certified nursing assistants (CNAs) at Northeast Florida State Hospital in Macclenny, Florida, thanks to training funding provided through CareerSource Northeast Florida (CareerSource NEFL).
The 600-plus-bed hospital has provided continuous service to persons with severe and persistent mental illness since 1959 – one of three state-owned facilities providing inpatient psychiatric care and treatment to individuals in Florida.
“With CareerSource Northeast Florida partnering with us, we’ve been able to help quite a few people obtain their CNAs since we partnered with their customized training program two years ago,” said John Gainey, the hospital’s senior registered nurse supervisor who oversees nursing education. “We know this type of career development is important.”
Sonya Speights, CareerSource NEFL Director of Training and Career Pathways, says customized training is designed to meet the unique training needs of an employer or group of employers.
“It’s truly employer-driven, where the employer decides who will provide the training, what program of study will be used, and which employees will be trained,” Speights said. “Employees benefit by learning new skills and retaining employment after successful training completion. Customized training is a win-win for both employer and employee.”
CareerSource NEFL Healthcare Sector Manager Carol Cullen says customized training is offered to employers such as Northeast Florida State Hospital to meet specific training needs of existing employees as it relates to the introduction of new technologies, new production or service procedures, workplace literacy, or helping employees upgrade to new jobs that require additional skills.
“When a customized training program is approved, we will reimburse the employer for a percentage of the total training costs,” Cullen said. “Most employers fall under one of the ‘high-demand’ sector industries, which includes healthcare and manufacturing/aviation, logistics/transportation and finance/information technology. However, other industries may apply and may be approved for training funds.”
At the hospital, each CNA participant completes a 120-hour program that’s completed in about eight weeks. The program includes 80 hours of classroom-led instruction followed by a minimum of 40 hours of clinicals and a skills lab.
“We have a skills lab here where they start with the basics like proper hand washing then on to providing bed baths, foot care and hand and nail care,” Gainey said. “There are a total of 24 skills in the check-off to complete the program. We try to do four classes a year with 12 people per class…and we did two additional classes last year thanks to the customized training funds we received. We’ve completed eight classes so far and are in our ninth class now. We’re very appreciative of what CareerSource NEFL has done in offering this assistance for us.”
So are many of the CNA program participants.
After hospital employees receive their licenses, having a CNA certification allows them to move up at the hospital with a pay increase and allows them to work directly with patients at nursing homes and hospitals.
Janna Dixon, a records technician at the hospital, received her CNA certification through the program in March.
Born and raised in Baker County, Dixon joined the staff at the Northeast Florida State Hospital in 2020.
“I always just wanted to be a nurse, but never had the opportunity to actually quit work and go forward with the necessary education,” Dixon said. “When I came here, they really pushed continuing education. I knew they were having the CNA program that John was leading. On a whim, I asked my supervisor if that was something I would be allowed to do since I wasn’t actually in a direct-care staff position – and she said ‘absolutely.’”
Although she “was pretty nervous” because she had not worked on a unit that worked with patients every day, Dixon started working on weekends just to be in that kind of role at the hospital.
“I loved the teachers here…they were very patient they let you practice and train as often as you wanted,” she said. “Even on your days off, you could come up here and learn as much as you wanted to. They’re also very supportive in encouraging you to move further up in the profession.”
And that’s what Dixon is doing now – applying for a program to receive certification as a Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) through a program offered at North Florida Technical College in Starke.
She hopes CareerSource NEFL, through its Individual Training Account (ITA) program, may help with a scholarship, as well.
ITAs, which are sometimes referred to as training scholarships, vouchers, or stipends, provide eligible job seekers a choice and the support training that leads to an in-demand job.
Currently, Dixon plans to continue working at the hospital.
“It’s a good feeling to be able to interact directly with patients now and help where I can,” she said.
Cheyanna Fussell, who has worked at the hospital for 10 years, recently completed the CNA program and is currently in training for an LPN license.
“When I first started in 2012, the hospital did offer a CNA program that was locally funded,” Fussell said. “I applied then, but they discontinued the program that same year. I stayed on and worked on the ward for a while, supervising the living area staff for a whole unit. But I was excited when they brought the program back through the connection with CareerSource.”
Now in classes to complete her LPN certification, she says the CNA program gave her a way to progress in the healthcare profession.
With the shortage of nurses in Florida, and healthcare professionals in general, Cullen says customized training can help employers like Northeast Florida State Hospital become a pipeline to help more people attain the necessary certifications to fill the void.
“This is among the many programs CareerSource NEFL offers to employers, including involvement in virtual job fairs, facilitating in-person job fairs at our facilities, and other support to help them find workers, ” Cullen said. “In this case, our customized training dollars have given the hospital a chance to upskill their current employees so we can have the healthcare workers we need now and in the future.”