School health aides graduate from retraining program

Helena Diones works as a school health aide at President Thomas Jefferson Elementary School.

*Video and sound are available for this story.  More information at bottom of news release.

HONOLULU – Twenty school health aides serving O‘ahu public schools graduated from a new training program at Kapi‘olani Community College tonight.  They are part of the second cohort of the University of Hawai‘i’s School Health Aide (SHA) Level I Program.

There are approximately 180,000 students in public schools in Hawai‘i with 255 school health aides statewide.  School health aides have a major impact on health promotion and disease prevention. The Department of Education currently requires a high school diploma, one year of experience working with youth and certifications in first aid and CPR for school health aides. 

In 2013, the University of Hawai‘i, and Departments of Health and Education (DOH and DOE) began to collaborate for a higher level of support for school health aides.  Kapi‘olani Community College’s nursing department developed a 75-hour curriculum, which includes an instructor’s visit to each of the school health rooms to evaluate the student’s level of competency as a school health aide.  At the completion of the course, students receive a certificate of competency.  The new curriculum helps to standardize training across the state.  It has also opened new career pathways to health-related degree programs throughout the University of Hawai‘i System.

The first graduates of the School Health Aide Program completed the training in the summer of 2014.  Jefferson Elementary School Health Aide Helena Diones was in that group.  After completing the student health aide training she went on to become a Certified Nurse Assistant (CNA).  Diones says, “It has opened doors for me to look beyond being a health aide.”

The DOH’s Joan A. Takamori, DOE’s Steve Shiraki and Kapi‘olani CC’s  Paulette Williams wrote the new school health aide curriculum.  The plan is to train all health aides statewide by 2018.  In addition, the hope is to have new health aides take the initial training for entry into DOE employment as a School Health Aide.

Williams, who co-chairs Kapi‘olani CC’s nursing department, says, “The school health aides are there to provide an awesome service to the entire community and we at Kapi‘olani Community College are proud that we’re able to be a part of this and to be able to share this curriculum with all of the community colleges throughout the state.”

Funding for the new school health aide training and curriculum was obtained through Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training Grants from the U.S. Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration.  Kapi‘olani CC Health Academy Dean Patricia O'Hagan wrote the grant for the SHA program, and is working with UH Maui College, Kaua‘i Community College and Windward Community College to deliver the curriculum.  The SHA and Community Health Worker programs were awarded about $1 million out of the total training amount of more than $12 million. The grant monies are also being used to develop a SHA Level II Program and revision of curriculum for the Community Health Worker Program, which will also be provided to the UH Community College partners. 

About the University of Hawai‘i System

Established in 1907 and fully accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, the University of Hawai‘i System includes 10 campuses and dozens of educational, training and research centers across the state. As the sole public system of higher education in Hawai‘i, UH offers an array of undergraduate, graduate and professional degrees and community programs.  UH enrolls more than 60,000 students from Hawai‘i, the U.S. mainland and around the world.  For more information visit www.hawaii.edu.

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VIDEO AND SOUND AVAILABLE

Link to download video and sound:http://bit.ly/1MgLxXz

B-ROLL:

Tonight’s School Health Aide Level I Program Graduation Ceremony at Kapi‘olani Community College

School Health Aide Helena Diones in the Jefferson Elementary School Health Room

School Health Aide Level I class at Kapi‘olani Community College

SOUNDBITES:

Kathryn Matayoshi, Superintendent, Department of Education (:08)

“This is the first time we've had formal training for our school health aides.  They are doing it tuition free.  It's great!”

Paulette Williams, Co-Chair Kapi‘olani CC Nursing Department (:16)

“The school health aides are there to really provide an awesome service to the entire community and we at Kapi‘olani Community College are proud that we’re able to be a part of this and are able to share this curriculum with all of the community colleges throughout the state.”

Helena Diones, Health Aide, Jefferson Elementary School (:05)

“It has opened doors for me to look beyond being a health aide.”