(Photo Above: Holly, who experienced homelessness before Climb, is now a registered nurse and the Clinical Director at Epsilon Health Solutions, where she hires other graduates as CNAs.)

Graduates Meet a Critical Need for Healthcare Workers

As Wyoming continues to navigate an economic downturn, our graduates are part of the state’s workforce solution.

“In my mind, Certified Nursing Assistants (CNAs) are superheroes,” says Holly, who graduated from Climb more than 10 years ago and now works as the Clinical Director of Epsilon Health Solutions. “They are the backbone of what we do.”

Holly’s team of CNAs cares for more than 100 patients in the Casper area. She says that during the pandemic, home healthcare has limited patients’ exposure to COVID-19 and allowed staff to use tele-health technology to take vital signs and communicate other critical information remotely.

Upward Growth in the Workforce: Graduate Wage Progression

“There’s also an important social and emotional part of what our CNAs do every day,” says Holly. “It’s really about making a connection with someone who’s isolated, visiting with them about their grandkids, just having someone to talk to.”

In the past five years, Climb has trained more than 310 participants statewide in various medical careers; these graduates are now filling severe shortages in the state’s healthcare workforce.

Recent medical trainings have covered skills in contact tracing, medical recordkeeping, and phlebotomy to meet the needs of local economies.

Holly demonstrates the kind of upward workforce mobility that many Climb graduates experience. “Before Climb, I was in an abusive marriage. My ex-husband threw our belongings onto the front yard, and we became homeless. I applied for the training because I had no skills, no way to provide for my children. I had only waited tables.”

After her job placement, Holly worked as a CNA for several years before deciding to earn a nursing degree through Casper College. She has since hired several Climb graduates to work for Epsilon.

“I tell new CNAs that the most important thing you can do is be dependable and steadfast. In this field, people rely on us for everything.”

“In my mind, Certified Nursing Assistants are superheroes.”

Win for Wyoming!
POSITIVELY IMPACTING WYOMING’S ECONOMY

Moving families into a place where they can contribute to local economies creates a stronger Wyoming for all—resulting in more stable, healthy, and vibrant communities.

  • 2020 Climb graduates increased their total annual earnings from $681,216 to $2,320,766.
  • Wyoming saves $2 million annually from decreased Medicaid, food stamp, and childcare expenses.