CCHcE Impacting Amarillo and Beyond
The Center for Continuing Healthcare Education partners with numerous groups in the Panhandle to offer healthcare professionals a variety of options for continuing education, professional development, and certifications.
For some, November is considered Career Development month. For the Center for Continuing Healthcare Education (CCHcE from here forward) on Amarillo College's West Campus, that month is every month. They hold numerous workshops and seminars throughout the year to help healthcare workers receive required continuing education hours, gain needed certifications, and move their careers forward. From dentists and dental workers, mental health professionals, to those in long-term care settings, CCHcE is providing much-needed continuing education and opportunities for people to advance their skills.
The staff in this department work hard to help support and partner with organizations that provide continuing education hours for multiple communities in the Panhandle. The pandemic did not slow them down but only served to make them pivot and begin offering these workshops in a variety of ways. Since then, they have even seen an increase in the number of people who can attend from various counties across the region. Whereas once these seminars might only have been in person, they now offer both in-person, online, and hybrid options.
The list of partner organizations is lengthy and includes Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Panhandle AHEC and AHEC of the South Plains, PAGD (Panhandle Association of General Dentistry), PASO (Panhandle AIDS Support Organization), as well as BSA and Northwest Texas Hospital. This partnership extends beyond conferences and seminars to include the involvement of the CCHcE staff in a number of advisory boards to help determine the needs of the organizations and how Amarillo College can come alongside them to provide expanding opportunities. One such future outcome based on survey data is a conference dedicated to administrators of long-term care facilities.
Last year, CCHcE host 1318 participants both virtually and on-location and offered 80 hours of training. That's big exposure for the college and Cammie Mallard, Continuing Professional Education Coordinator, only wants to broaden that impact. "We want people to know we're here first and foremost," she says. "We also want to expand what we are offering to the communities around the Panhandle." She has a desire to continue to increase the availability and accessibility of conferences and workshops to those in smaller communities who typically do not have access to these seminars without having to travel. Many of these can now be accessed and completed online.
In addition to conferences and seminars, CCHcE also provides students the opportunity to complete a number of healthcare certifications. These include CNA (certified nurse aide), phlebotomy, medication aide, massage therapy, EKG Tech, and IV Therapy to name a few. Students of all ages attend these classes and are able to enter the healthcare field with just a few weeks of class and clinical hours for some certifications. Other programs, such as massage therapy, take two semesters to complete. Students can also choose to finish multiple certification programs to make them more marketable for local and regional facilities. Combining CNA and EKG tech or phlebotomy allows an employer to utilize different skills in those who complete multiple credentials. Going this route also gives students some experience in the field to see if this is the career they want to pursue before investing a lot of time and money in pursuing more advanced degrees and skills. Other students use these programs as a launching point into other programs: Certified Medical Assistant, LVN, or ADN.
Even though CCHcE is tucked away in a little corner of the West Campus, it is making a big impact in the community. According to Cammie Mallard, it is only the beginning. For more information about what they offer, call the office at (806) 354-6085 or visit their webpage at https://www.actx.edu/ch/
