Governor Mills Announces New Maine Careers & Recovery Prepare Initiative to Improve Maine’s Health care Workforce

A new $21 million method, Health care Instruction for ME, expands availability of absolutely free and lower-charge career training for overall health treatment employees and companies

Governor Janet Mills now introduced the start of Healthcare Education for ME, an initiative of her Maine Positions & Recovery Prepare to improve Maine’s health care workforce by expanding availability of absolutely free and minimal-value vocation coaching to assist healthcare personnel advance their professions, aid workforce education requirements of healthcare companies, and draw in new workers to quick-increasing fields.

By the new Health care Training for ME website, individuals and companies can join with training from companies and education associates, this kind of as grownup education packages, neighborhood colleges, and the university program. Individuals and employers may well then utilize to obtain tuition support to enroll in instruction courses, or present coaching to their workforce, at small or no cost.

The initiative is a partnership of the Maine Office of Labor, the Maine Department of Wellness and Human Companies, Maine Section of Education and learning, Maine Community University Technique, and the College of Maine Process. It is supported by $21 million from the Maine Careers & Restoration System, which incorporates $8.5 million allocated to DOL and $12.5 million allotted to the Maine Community College System for workforce training.

“The health and fitness treatment sector is just one of Maine’s premier businesses, placing thousands of Maine men and women to do the job in excellent-having to pay jobs defending the health and fitness of Maine men and women. But for a long time now, overall health treatment amenities throughout the state have experienced to grapple with a scarcity of personnel and the pandemic has only made the problem even worse,” stated Governor Mills. “These new education plans will make it less complicated and much more cost-effective for people, primarily youthful people today, to pursue professions in health care and to move up the job ladder into greater-having to pay careers, which supports our health treatment companies and strengthens our wellbeing care workforce in the extensive-run.”

“The Maine Department of Labor is fully commited to connecting the folks of our condition to large-wage, in-demand work. This new partnership and centralized web page will be a critical source for health care employers and staff wanting to progress their and their workforce’s capabilities,” stated Laura Fortman, Commissioner of the Maine Department of Labor. “Healthcare education prospects can now be found in 1 quick to navigate location, and healthcare personnel can perhaps obtain profession-advancing coaching with minor to no cost to them or their employer.”

“The overall health of Maine people and the health and fitness of our economic climate count on having a strong, substantial-top quality overall health treatment procedure,” said Jeanne Lambrew, Commissioner of the Maine Division of Overall health and Human Products and services. “The cornerstone of our health treatment system is the competent specialists whose awareness, teaching, and compassion retain Maine individuals balanced. The Health care Teaching for ME software will appeal to a lot more people to these worthwhile professions and support them advance in their occupations, a central goal of Governor Mills’ system to improve Maine’s health care workforce now and into the potential.”

“We are very pleased to husband or wife in this energy to offer added pathways for these who want to go after professions as health care experts. Maine’s adult schooling applications have yrs of expertise in providing business-identified, credential bearing trainings and prospects to jumpstart professions in the health care workforce,” reported Pender Makin, Commissioner of the Maine Division of Instruction. “Healthcare Teaching for ME helps streamline accessibility to these trainings and opportunities although growing collaboration with companies and bigger schooling plans to provide a lot more highly developed schooling and work options.” By working right with wellness treatment employers across fields these types of as long-term care, emergency solutions, hospitals, behavioral health and fitness, and dental, Health care Training for ME aims to boost workforce schooling and retention premiums. For latest overall health treatment employees, the program delivers absolutely free or small-value pathways to new capabilities and sophisticated credentials, especially as a result of shorter-phrase coaching solutions. Potential well being care workers may perhaps obtain information and facts, training, and other assistance to commence their occupations.

Beginning currently, health and fitness care businesses with fewer than 100 personnel throughout their procedure who accept MaineCare, may perhaps use for instruction cash to address staff recruitment and retention concerns stemming from the pandemic. All businesses and people may well start to apply for education funds on May possibly 2, 2022.

Leaders from Maine’s health treatment industry, schools, and universities welcomed the start of Healthcare Coaching for ME as a critical and impressive plan to enable reinforce Maine’s essential well being treatment workforce following the disruption of the pandemic. “The COVID-19 pandemic has introduced into emphasis the price of Maine’s clinic workforce and the benefits of professions in overall health treatment,” reported Steven Michaud, President of the Maine Healthcare facility Affiliation. “Throughout Maine, medical center workers have saved life and delivered large-quality care to their neighborhood communities. The Healthcare Coaching for ME program will aid to attract more individuals to these professions and keep present-day workers, as portion of the Mills Administration’s broader tactic to commit in and reinforce Maine’s well being treatment workforce.”

“The two most critical indicators of pandemic recovery in Maine nursing houses and assisted dwelling communities are sturdy staffing and occupancy,” stated Angela Westhoff, President and CEO of the Maine Wellbeing Care Affiliation. “COVID-19 carries on to set strain on these linked things and our associates stay worried about workers burnout, turnover, and a mass departure from caregiving completely. MHCA is pleased to companion with the Administration on tangible recruitment and retention methods, like Health care Education for ME, that will really encourage, incentivize, and cultivate the future generation of Maine’s wellness care gurus.”

“As the greatest producer of the state’s experienced health care workforce, the University of Maine Method looks forward to this partnership,” claimed Dannel Malloy, Chancellor of the College of Maine Method. “The new Healthcare Training for ME initiative will aid more Mainers pursuing good-having to pay positions caring for their group through substantial-good quality healthcare schooling and education that make improvements to their possess social mobility and wellness results in rural Maine.”

“The limited-time period wellness treatment programs at Maine’s neighborhood schools have been intended in partnership with health-related companions throughout the state, ensuring that learners get accurately the techniques desired for today’s workplace. Not only do we have great nursing and other 2-calendar year packages, but we’re using the Maine Positions & Recovery Plan money to tremendously extend our short-phrase wellness care schooling courses,” explained Dan Belyea, Chief Workforce Improvement Officer at the Maine Community Higher education Technique. “The Health care Training for ME plan illustrates the response necessary to supply a competent workforce to superior-desire wellness treatment positions, and the require to act quickly and collaboratively. Our limited-phrase education embraces serious-time alternatives and the accelerated track in which learners can realize a credential of worth and enter into the workforce in a matter of months.”

“These very last couple decades have been truly unprecedented in the development and complexity of the need inside of the behavioral wellbeing realm. Clinicians and employees have experienced to function extended several hours and have major hundreds all across Maine,” explained Malory Shaughnessy, Executive Director of the Alliance for Habit and Psychological Overall health Services.“Alliance users are encouraged by the Mills Administration developing and advancing the new workforce initiatives in the Maine Work opportunities & Restoration Prepare. On the lookout forward, we have hope that these new Health care Schooling for ME assets for vendors and workers will help with existing desires as effectively as address our longstanding workforce shortages. We are excited to collaborate with the administration on this and their broader health treatment workforce endeavours.”

Healthcare Teaching for ME is part of a collection of initiatives from Governor Mills’ Maine Careers & Recovery System to make investments in the state’s wellness treatment workforce. Impending courses include scholarships and college student loan aid for folks in wellness care professions new recruitment attempts to encourage youthful people to enter careers in health and fitness treatment and the creation of wellness treatment vocation navigators to assist people today intrigued in well being care fields figure out the suitable job path for them.

The Maine Positions & Recovery Approach is the Governor’s approach, accredited by the Legislature, to devote almost $1 billion in Federal American Rescue System resources to boost the life of Maine people today and households, help companies, create superior-paying out work, and develop an economy poised for future prosperity.

It draws intensely on suggestions from the  Governor’s Economic Restoration Committee and the State’s 10-Year Financial Growth Approach, transforming them into serious action to boost the life of Maine people today and improve the financial state.

For much more about Maine Jobs & Restoration Plan, visit maine.gov/jobsplan.