Offer apprenticeship training for new hires and team members for career development and advancement.

Henry Ford Health System (Henry Ford) has developed several apprenticeship programs for healthcare-related positions. These programs include Pharmacy Technician, Nurse Assistant, and Eyecare Assistant Apprenticeships and are aimed at providing career development opportunities for new hires and existing team members to advance their careers. Apprenticeship programs are one year in duration with recruitment for the Nurse Assistant and Eyecare Assistant programs occurring monthly and the Pharmacy Technician apprenticeship occurring quarterly. Henry Ford understands that it is often difficult to maintain employment and be enrolled in school simultaneously, which is why apprentices are considered employees of the health system and earn a livable wage while training for a career in a program with a significant career path and projected growth. 

Pharmacy Technician Apprenticeship: requires 2,000 hours of on-the-job training/mentoring in addition to a minimum of 144 hours of classroom instruction in partnership with MedCerts as our training provider. Our curriculum and mentoring prepare apprentices to take the State of Michigan’s pharmacy technician exam and consists of three key components: experiential training, which occurs at Henry Ford, didactic coursework; and simulations. Henry Ford has partnered with MedCerts to provide the didactic and simulation portion of the program and it has been formally recognized and accredited by the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists. Apprentices are paired with experienced Pharmacy Technicians that serve as preceptors during the program, under the oversight and control of the Pharmacist and Pharmacy Manager.

Nursing Assistant Apprenticeship: is approximately 6-weeks of classroom training that prepares students to take the State of Michigan Certified Nurse Assistant exam and work in a hospital setting. Henry Ford has partnered with an external training provider to facilitate the classroom component of training where students will learn all aspects of patient care, as well as hands-on demonstrations and practice. The second part of the program consists of clinical training, followed by 4-weeks of training that includes electronical medical records training (EPIC), and other software systems essential to accurately documenting patient care. Students are also trained and required to obtain Basic Life Support certification.

Eyecare Assistant Apprenticeship: begins with the foundation of our online courses that teach each skill set related to the technician’s role, the purpose of it and how to perform it. Our Technician Training Program begins with Orientation. Apprentices are taught the Henry Ford OptimEyes (HFO) culture of caring, safety, and HIPAA compliance. The Technician will then be enrolled in our HFO Essentials courses including, Basic Optics, Anatomy of the Eye, Exam Details, Lens Portfolio, Patient Communication, Insurance Fundamentals, and Scheduling Communication.

In 2021, Henry Ford’s apprenticeship programs enrolled 40 nurse assistant apprentices, 15 pharmacy technician apprentices, and 20 eyecare assistant apprentices. Henry Ford is considering expansion of our apprenticeship programs to include customer service, dialysis/clinical technicians, and surgical reprocessing technicians.

These apprenticeships benefit individuals new to the workforce or changing careers allowing them to earn a living wage and learn simultaneously; instead of having to choose between work and education. Apprenticeships advance our DEI efforts by increasing awareness of healthcare careers to those that would otherwise not be familiar through targeted recruitment and informational sessions. These apprenticeships help bridge the gap for disadvantaged populations who have been disenfranchised while working to improve equity and diversity of our workforce.

Tianna Morgan