News Talk 94.1/AM 1600 Where The Upper Cumberland Talks
Vol State’s new program with the currently-closed Cumberland River Hospital is about bringing more workers to health care.
Vol State Vice President for Economic and Community Development Nick Bishop said they had been having conversations on the topic with Cookeville Regional and Livingston Regional. He said they decided to bring Cumberland River Hospital into the mix while it works towards reopening and also needing a workforce.
“It’s a great opportunity because we had the nursing program at our Livingston campus but we’re kind of maxed out there,” Bishop said. “So if we want to introduce more people into the workforce, we need additional space and additional resources.”
Bishop said he believes this is a way to expand access to healthcare in Clay County. He said the hospital potentially opening up under a new designation paired with a higher education entity on sight could help solidify workforce issues.
“We’re all really hopeful that if the hospital can get back up and running in some capacity that’ll be great for people in Clay County and surrounding areas where they can have that service and not have to leave to go to larger metro areas to receive critical care,” Bishop said. “But I also think it can revitalize the city of Celina and Clay County.”
In order to get the program up and running, Bishop said they are using a phased approach. He said the week of September 11th, they will launch EMT training in partnership with the city of Celina. He said the city has gathered resources in hopes of paying for those in Celina to get certified as basic EMTs.
Bishop said the next phase will be a certified clinical medical assistant program projected to start in October. He said Vol State and Hospital Owner Johnny Presley are currently working through the needed steps to make this a reality.
“He is certainly putting up some resources and space and equipment, some equipment can’t be used on patients but it can be utilized for training students,” Bishop said. “So with this upcoming EMT cohort that training will take place at the hospital. We’re bringing in some equipment and supplies that we have from the college, bringing in one of our instructors, but then Johnny also has equipment that will allow them to do training in Clay County as well. So it’s just an all-around partnership.”
Bishop said if individuals are interested in enrolling in the EMT program, there are opportunities at the Livingston and Cookeville campuses as well.
