“We are really grateful for the waivers that were put into place by the government and the regulatory agencies to help us operate through really the height and the peak of COVID-19 but now as we see some of those waivers be rescinded and start to untie there are new challenges,” Rochelle Rindels, VP of nursing and clinical services at Good Samaritan, said.
Rindels said Good Sam’s partnership with Sanford Health has proven to be beneficial on this front as it allowed the not-for-profit provider to create an internal CNA training program to allow the TNAs to train on-site.
Out of more than 600 students that have come through the Good Samaritan TNA program, the organization has seen a 91% certification pass rate.
“We’ve always wanted to provide training to the CNA position, recognizing how important it is in our facilities,” Rindels said. “They’re the ones that are side-byside with the residents everyday. We’ve got several instances where we’ve had a CNA go on and obtain their nursing license and then work as director of nursing in the same facility.”