For years, Martha McDermott of Honolulu worked as a private caregiver, helping people take care of ill and ailing family members.
She also drove part time for Uber, modeled and took on other odd jobs. During the COVID-19 pandemic, however, she felt a calling to take on one of the toughest jobs in the world: to become a nurse.
“I just had this epiphany during COVID,” she said. “I saw that all the nurses were, I felt, being treated poorly, (and) obviously the burnout was so high. They were seeing so much trauma and retiring early and dropping out of the profession.”
Somehow her heart was telling her she should become a nurse to help.
In spring 2022 she enrolled at Leeward Community College to become a certified nurse aide, and learned she could also, through a new “earn and learn” program, become a licensed practical nurse.
McDermott, 57, is part of the first cohort of 31 students that graduated in December from a first-of-its-kind bridge program at the University of Hawaii Maui College designed to train and bring more LPNs into the workforce.
Many of the graduates are currently working as certified nurse aides, as is the case with McDermott, or medical assistants or staff in other health care positions.
The program, a collaboration between the Healthcare Association of Hawaii, University of Hawaii Maui College, Ohana Pacific Health and Kaiser Permanente, among others, offers a way for residents to work at their current jobs while learning and training to become licensed practical nurses.
All 31 students who graduated from the program were fully sponsored at a cost of about $14,000 each by a combination of funds, including tuition support from the Good Jobs Hawaii grant. UH Maui College fields the applications and provides the coursework.
Shortage of nurses
The state is significantly short of all levels of nurses but has experienced a sharp increase, in particular, in vacancies for licensed practical nurses.
A recent report found there were 211 vacancies, or 30% of all LPN positions in 2022 — a 47% increase from 2019.
Both certified nurse aides and LPNs are in high demand at nursing homes, assisted living facilities and other senior care settings, where there has been a chronic shortage.
Wesley Lo, CEO of Ohana Pacific Management Co., which runs nursing homes across the state, says he is still unable to make available unfilled beds for patients due to lack of staffing.
But he is encouraged to see the program’s success, and believes it will serve as a new pipeline to help fill those empty positions for years to come. He is also hopeful of improvements due to higher Medicaid reimbursement rates this year.
“We have opened up more beds,” he said, “but some facilities still don’t have enough staff to fill their unfilled beds.”
Hilton Raethel, president and CEO of HAH, called the first round of graduates a “testament to more than 2-1/2 years of collaboration and hard work.
“Now we have health care workers with higher skill levels and earning potential, and employers who have employees who can handle additional patient care tasks. Everyone benefits, including patients and residents.”
Raethel said LPN courses were available but enrollment was low. After looking into it, this appeared to be because many of them were offered during the day, when most potential candidates, such as CNAs and medical assistants, were working.
Also, many potential enrollees had to work full time and could not afford a year off to pursue the LPN coursework, so “earn and learn” addresses those barriers and provides a bridge to the next level of nursing.
There is incentive, given that the pay for a CNA is about $20 to $22 an hour, said Raethel, while that of an LPN is $30 to $33 an hour. That’s a significant jump after just about a year of training.
CNAs provide basic patient care and help with everyday duties, while LPNs get more in-depth training and monitor vital signs, treat wounds and give medications. Many work in nursing homes or physicians’ offices.
The first cohort included 31 residents from Kauai, Maui and Oahu.
A second cohort that is undergoing training now includes 38 residents from Kauai, Maui, Oahu and Hilo who are expected to graduate in December.
Jaylin Cezar-Butac, a Kauai resident, is also a graduate of the first cohort.
She had initially moved to San Diego to undergo training when she learned of the LPN program, which brought her back to Kauai.
“It’s been great,” she said. “You get to earn an income while continuing an education.”
Cezar-Butac, 23, is working as a certified nurse aide at Garden Isle Nursing and Rehab while studying for her licensure exam as an LPN and plans to continue working there. Having come from a family of health care workers, her ultimate goal is to become a registered nurse.
“I have a lot of health care workers in my family, so I would say that’s the biggest influence,” she said. “Honestly, helping those who need help inspired me to want to continue in nursing.”
The goal is to continue expanding the program, said Raethel, offering it in more places such as Kona, for instance, and to launch a bridge program from licensed practical nurse to registered nurse.
McDermott is also working part time as a CNA at The Villas in Liliha while preparing for the licensure exam to become an LPN.
“I would say it’s an amazing opportunity,” she said. “If you can take advantage of it, do it. … This opportunity is the best because it puts you right in the field immediately.”
McDermott, after reflection, realized caregiving and nurses run in her family. She had cared for her mother, who was a wonderful caregiver, and great-uncle. Her maternal grandmother was also a nurse.
The program allowed her to fast-track her career, getting to goals much quicker than without it.
“My life calling is always to be of service,” she said. “I always want to help however I can.”
Interested in the program?
>> The spring 2025 cohort begins in the spring semester.
>> Program applications accepted Sept. 1-Oct. 15.
>> Current or potential students with questions can call 808-984-3306 or email uhmc.advising@hawaii.edu to schedule an academic advising appointment.
