NEWSLETTER 6

Polk County Healthcare Workforce Collaborative

Year 2: Quarter 4 Summary

The first quarter of our third year with the grant came during a time we have typically experienced a slow-down due to schools being out of session. However, over the last two full years, there has been lots of momentum building and this summer was busy with planning meetings and events! This first quarter compared to last year’s first quarter, our events and presentations nearly tripled!

Our events began in the summer, with an inaugural summer Healthcare Workforce Prep Day. Students who attended were able to become certified in UnityPoint’s Stop the Bleed program, run through Mock Interviews with representatives from our 7 partners, and review case studies on DMACC’s Anatomage Table. We also partnered in a new event to promote Clinical Research careers in Iowa. With the help of the Iowa Coalition of Clinical Research, we hosted a panel of experts to discuss how they entered the Clinical Research field, and what their experiences have been like. The following week we then hosted the first Discover Healthcare Day of the new school year. Nearly 80 students attended the event and learned about a variety of careers like respiratory therapy, surgical tech, pharmacy and more!

The PCHWC Pathway Navigator has also been busy as the new school year begins. Her current case load continues to grow and is now up to over 250 students between the four partner schools, which is up from 146 from the previous school year.

Our Marketing and Data Specialist was busy growing the website, social media channels and collecting data for review as the grant is in its final year. According to the data submitted by the seven partners of the grant, there have been over 400 students who have attended a PCHWC event now studying healthcare in post-secondary school. Additionally, there are also 45 students who have attended an event now working in one of the three partner hospitals!

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