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October 22, 2019
Lafourche Booking Log – October 21, 2019
October 22, 2019
One of the biggest purposes of college is to provide students with a chance to get prepared to be leaders in the workforce, upon graduation.
Thanks to a partnership between Fletcher Technical Community College and Lady of the Sea General Hospital in Galliano, locals studying in pharmacy will get the chance to do exactly that with real-life training at a facility that serves the medical needs of thousands of people in the south Lafourche Parish area.
In mid-September, a partnership was announced which will allow Fletcher students to be able to fulfill their externship requirement at Lady of the Sea Hospital Community Pharmacies in Cut Off.
The partnership was actually launched in June and it will prepare students to enter the pharmacy field and pursue certification, including the Pharmacy Technician Certification Board’s PTCB exam.
Lady of the Sea CEO Karen Collins said the partnership is great for Fletcher, the hospital and the entire community. She said she’s pleased to have the hospital involved in the endeavor.
“Lady of the Sea Hospital and Community Pharmacies welcome the opportunity to partner with Fletcher Technical Community College to provide externships and workplace environments for their pharmacy technician students,” she said. “We are committed to providing educational opportunities for students, and support expanding the healthcare workforce for our community.”
The program is available to all students in Fletcher’s Pharmacy Technician Program.
The program’s coursework is divided into three parts: online instructions (at least 50 hours), 2 day in-classroom lab and checkoff and a technician externship (80 hours).
The online instructions cover pharmacy calculations, dosage calculations, IV flow rates, drug compounding and dose conversion, among many other topics.
The two day in-classroom lab gives the students hands-on practice on what they have learned online.
The externship takes it a step further and provides students with real-life pharmacy experience.
Fletcher Technical Community College Chancellor Dr. Kristine Strickland said any deal that gets students real-life training like this one is a major win.
“Fletcher Technical Community College is grateful to Lady of the Sea Hospital and Community Pharmacies for providing our Pharmacy Tech students with opportunities to gain hands-on, real world training in their profession,” said Chancellor Dr. Kristine Strickland. “The ability to provide opportunities for students to learn in the work environment are invaluable and we appreciate the continued partnership with Lady of the Sea Hospital and Community Pharmacies.”
The Pharmacy Technician Program students who started in June have completed the online portion of the program and are now taking certification exams and moving on to their externships. The next Pharmacy Technician Program will begin in March and registration will be available in January.
Financial assistance through your local regional Louisiana Workforce Commission office or Motivation Education & Training, Inc. (MET, Inc.) or a payment plan option through FACTS Management may be available for those who qualify. Contact Fletcher’s Workforce Solutions at 985.448.7938, or workforcesolutions@fletcher.edu.
LADY OF THE SEA CONTINUING TO EVOLVE
A lot of folks locally don’t know much about Lady of the Sea. It’s a small, community hospital quietly tucked away in Galliano.
The hospital has its limitations, sure, but it’s also a lifesaver to folks in the small, rural community it serves.
Lady of the Sea is constantly trying to evolve and do more to meet the needs of its people.
The hospital has added several doctors to its medical team in recent months to try and help serve the needs of the community.
Lady of the Sea is also a local leader in diabetes care. The hospital hosts several diabetes education classes through its Learning Center, which provides locals education and tips on how to live with the disease and how to improve self-care skills so that they can better manage the disease and their lives.
The program has been certified by the American Diabetes Association and provides a six-hour training for patients, including information on signs and symptoms, risk factors, nutrition management, physical activity, monitoring blood sugars and managing medications.
Additional information is provided on reducing the risk of common complications, as well as useful information on handling common life situations that may impact the health of a diabetic patient.
The program includes follow-up appointments to assist in monitoring after all classes have been completed.
A physician may refer patients to the Diabetes Education Program. Once a referral is made, the patient will be contacted by the staff, a class schedule will be discussed and a position will be held for the patient. Some patients can bring a spouse, caregiver or parent to help relay the most information possible.•
BY CASEY GISCLAIR
