There were no shell games involving team hats and no breaking news alerts across the bottom of the screen on ESPN, but make no mistake, for these Beaufort Memorial Hospital employees, this “signing day” was every bit as important as the hyped-up affairs college athletes enjoy.
Beaufort Memorial Hospital (BMH) welcomed the first class of team members into its new career development program last Friday. The program, named People Achieving Their Highest (PATH), is designed to help staff learn new skills, earn advanced certifications and grow their careers at Beaufort Memorial.
Based on the traditional signing day for college-bound athletes, 34 BMH employees announced their commitments to pursue advanced career training toward clinical medical assistant, patient care technician, electrocardiogram technician, phlebotomist and nursing positions.
“We want our employees to have the opportunity to achieve their career aspirations,” BMH President and CEO Russell Baxley said. “We are committed to investing in their long-term growth, and we believe this program will provide the resources and support to do so.”
The program is structured to allow staff to continue working in their current role while participating.
“I want to be able to provide a more complete health care experience to our patients, and I believe the only way to do that is to continue my education,” said Kerri Lewis, who is a certified medical assistant seeking to become a licensed practical nurse (LPN). Lewis, who started working at BMH in 2015 and is a single mother with two children, tried twice to complete studies in nursing but stopped both times because the classes she needed were not offered at night when she could attend.
“I saw no other way to complete (the nursing program) until the PATH program came along,” she said. “Personally, I want to show my children that there is not a limit on growth.”
Participants receive access to numerous resources from career counseling to flexible scheduling to accommodate classes. Most notable are the available financial resources including educational and “gap” scholarships to support staff members’ investment of time in their education. In addition, books and the cost of certification exam fees will be covered under the PATH program. A childcare stipend to help with daycare costs is also available to all participants.
During the course of the program, each participant will also attend financial management workshops hosted by Regions Bank.
“We care about the financial stability of our team members,” Baxley said. “That commitment goes beyond helping them work toward a higher-paying position. We want to set them up for success in life.”
The PATH core curriculum was designed to streamline the process so that all of the participants can take fundamental classes together. The program will focus on:
Classroom training conducted on the BMH campus using coursework developed by the National Healthcareer Association;
Clinical skills development with BMH education department staff leading skills labs and on-the-job training;
Career-track programs in partnership with the University of South Carolina Beaufort (USCB) and Technical College of the Lowcountry (TCL), both longtime BMH educational affiliates.
Although the first cohort of PATH participants are focused on developing into clinical roles in the organization, the program will be expanding to consist of five career “clusters,” or pathways, including: hospitality, business, support services, diagnostics/therapeutics and direct patient care.
In addition to providing opportunities for employees, the program enables Beaufort Memorial to develop its workforce, filling higher level positions from within the organization.
“Our employees are our number one resource and we are working to provide every opportunity for their advancement and continued success,” Baxley said. “Their growth and success is what will ensure our organization’s growth and success well into the future.”
Funding for the PATH program was made possible through the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) and the Beaufort Memorial Hospital Foundation. Local partners include Beaufort County, Beaufort County School District, TCL and USCB.
Visit BeaufortMemorial.org/Careers to learn more about Beaufort Memorial and current career opportunities.
