Academy offers free nursing training

The community will soon have a new free workforce training program courtesy of the Southern Nevada State Veterans Home in Boulder City and the Nevada Department of Veterans Services.

Starting Nov. 1, the veterans’ home will offer training to become a certified nursing assistant through its PFC Nick Crombie Certified Nursing Assistant Training Academy. The Crombie Academy offers an introduction to basic nursing skills, nursing assistant duties and responsibilities.

Eli Quinones, director of the veterans’ home, said like many other facilities, they are having staffing issues. He said he came up with the idea for the Crombie Academy in order to build up the veterans’ home workforce.

“It took a year to get approval from the state, and we built the curriculum around the needs of veterans. … I want to help us with staffing and all the other nursing homes,” he said.

The Crombie Academy is a four-week intensive program that offers 120 hours of training: 40 hours of classroom instruction, 40 hours of labs and 40 hours of clinical instruction. It is free, and uniforms and textbooks are also provided. Once the coursework is completed, the students are expected to schedule and take the CNA certification exam. Those who pass it will be provided a front-line opportunity to apply for CNA positions within the Southern Nevada State Veterans Home.

The program has been approved by the Nevada State Board of Nursing.

Quinones said he is hoping to have 10-15 students in the program when its starts Nov. 1. It will also be offered several times throughout the year.

“CNAs are always in high demand and, due to the pandemic, the shortage of health care workers has made filling these positions all the more challenging,” said Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak in a press release. “I applaud the Nevada Department of Veterans Services for this innovative approach that will benefit everyone, from patients to the community.”

For information about the Crombie Academy and how to apply, contact Quinones’ assistant, Sara Riggle, at riggles@veterans.nv.gov.

The Crombie Academy is named in honor of 19-year-old U.S. Army Pfc. Nick Crombie of Winnemucca, Nevada. Crombie was killed in 2006 when an improvised explosive device detonated near his Humvee during combat operations in Iraq. He was serving as a combat medic, assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 6th Infantry Regiment, in Baumholder, Germany.

Contact reporter Celia Shortt Goodyear at cgoodyear@bouldercityreview.com or at 702-586-9401. Follow her on Twitter @csgoodyear.