Long-term care is in a pivotal moment. With the senior population growing exponentially as baby boomers require more intensive care, skilled and long-term facilities will require an influx of nurses and aides to be able to manage the increasing demand.

The cost of turnover is a detriment to the care of our seniors due to its financial impact and the lack of continuity of care for residents.

Kane Community Living Centers is a county-run long-term care and skilled nursing provider working across four campuses in Western Pennsylvania. We know that retention of nurse aides has a direct impact on the care and satisfaction of residents. We also know that a career ladder is the most effective way to promote retention in staff. 

In an effort to improve retention and empower employees, Kane has implemented a partnership with a licensed practical nurse program to educate certified nursing assistants and other staff members at no cost. The county signs a contract with each student that provides flexible scheduling. At graduation, the students would remain employees of Kane Community Living Centers for three years.

This LPN program would provide a clear career ladder from CNA to LPN to RN, which is provided for on a regular basis through tuition reimbursement by the county.

Interested employees were encouraged to apply. Prerequisites included being a Kane employee for one year and successful completion of the HESI exam. Each applicant was provided with a study guide. I also made time available twice each week to cover questions.

Of the students that passed the HESI, 11 students were selected based on committee recommendations and seniority. One additional student that was not selected paid independently to be able to participate with the first cohort.

Kane nurses with a master’s degree were asked to act as clinical instructors, with BSN-educated nurses serving as preceptors during clinicals. To reduce the cost of tuition further for the county, the clinical instructors were paid a token stipend from the LPN school, and the rest of what would usually be paid was applied to the students’ tuition, while the clinical instructors were paid their usual wage from the county.

It is Kane’s goal that a classroom for theoretical instruction will be approved by the Pennsylvania Department of Education so that the county facility can serve as a campus for the LPN school and educate primarily Allegheny County employees. The approval of the classroom at the McKeesport campus is currently pending, with a second classroom at the Scott campus currently being renovated in preparation for the second semester.

The Kane employees were joined by students from the community for their clinical work. The class was initially 35 students, with 12 being Kane employees. The class size dropped to 29 for the second semester, with all 12 employees continuing.

Further data will be collected as the cohort continues and graduates to better inform the county on the success rate of graduation, NCLEX pass rate and continued retention past graduation.

Molly McCullough, BSN, RN, NE-BC is an assistant director of nursing for the Kane Regional Community Living Center in Scott Township, PA. She is currently pursuing her master’s degree at The Ohio State University.

The opinions expressed in McKnight’s Long-Term Care News guest submissions are the author’s and are not necessarily those of McKnight’s Long-Term Care News or its editors.

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