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QCC Receives Close to Half Million in Skills Capital Grant for Nursing Labs
Contact: Karen Hutner
Office of Institutional Communications
khutner [at] qcc.mass.edu
Release Date:
8/15/2022
WORCESTER, MA— August 9, 2022— Quinsigamond Community College (QCC) was recently awarded $499,815 in Skills Capital Grant funding, which will be used to update three nursing labs at its Healthcare and Workforce Development Center, located in downtown Worcester. The labs enable nursing students to have hands-on training on the most state-of-the-art equipment, which is crucial in preparing them for a career in the field of nursing.
“QCC’s nursing programs have always provided nursing students with the most current, up-to-date equipment and training to ensure students are ready to immediately enter the workforce,”
said QCC President Luis G. Pedraja, Ph.D. “QCC is one of the largest providers of nurse education and practical nursing in Massachusetts and staying up-to-date with technology is vital in continuing to supply the Commonwealth with skilled healthcare workers.”
The Skills Capital Grant will not only fund equipment for the nurse education lab, but also the simulation lab and practical nursing lab, where students prepare for an Associate Degree in Nursing or a Practical Nursing Certificate.
“Technology in nursing is constantly changing and advancing, which allows nurses to improve efficiency, communicate effectively, and most importantly provide safer care. This grant will allow our nursing students to train on the newest equipment and most current technology, similar to what is being used in acute, critical, and long-term care settings. The equipment funded by the Skills Capital Grant will better prepare students to enter the nursing workforce,” said Dean of the School of Healthcare Pat Schmohl.
QCC will use the grant to supply the nursing labs with simulation manikins that allow students to apply the skills they’ve learned in a controlled environment. These highly life-like manikins come in models to represent infants, 4- to 7-year-olds and adults. Students can check vital signs, assess symptoms, and practice procedures such as tracheotomies. The grant will also cover a Pyxis medication dispensing system, hospital beds, patient lifts and an Electrocardiogram (EKG) machine.
The Baker-Polito Administrations’ Skills Capital Grant program has been funding career education technology since 2015. The latest round included $22 million given to 70 educational institutions.
To learn more, visit QCC’s Healthcare Programs.
Quinsigamond Community College is the most affordable higher education in Worcester County. As a regional leader in education and workforce development, QCC serves the diverse educational needs of Central Massachusetts by providing affordable, accessible, and high quality programming leading to transfer, career, and lifelong learning.