Amid recent COVID-19 surge, SCTCC offers nursing training to National Guard

ST. CLOUD — St. Cloud Technical and Community College is serving as one of 16 state partners who will provide emergency certified nursing assistant training for members of the National Guard, the college announced Tuesday.

Guard members will serve in under-staffed health care centers and assist in long-term care facilities to address staffing difficulties and shortages during a period of heightened need in the pandemic, according to a press release.

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Thirteen guard members are training at SCTCC this week. The training is being delivered in a hybrid model of in-person and online learning with a hands-on skills lab.

National Guard members who complete the training with a passing grade will be eligible to sit for the written and skills test. Participants who pass both portions of the testing for nursing assistant will be placed on the Minnesota Nursing Assistant Registry and will be eligible to continue working as a nursing assistant in their civilian life.

This training is also an opportunity for guard members to start a career pathway in a high-demand field.

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“St. Cloud Technical and Community College is proud to be involved in the effort to train National Guard members,” said Jennifer Erickson, director of customized training in the release. “Not only will these soldiers be filling a critical, immediate need in our healthcare and long-term care systems, but once training and testing is complete, they will have a recognized credential that they will be able to carry forward into civilian life.”

This article originally appeared on St. Cloud Times: Amid COVID surge, SCTCC offers nursing training to National Guard