How One Senior Care Community Is Supporting the Next Generation of Nurses

With ongoing staffing shortages in the senior care industry, finding innovative ways to support and empower the next generation of nurses is more important than ever. Through a program with a local career institute, Foulk Living, a senior living community in Wilmington, Delaware, has done just that.

How a Partnership Is Supporting Nursing Students

Leslie Johnson, executive director of Foulk Living

The idea for the partnership began with the goal of giving nursing students necessary hands-on training. The Dawn Career Institute, which provides education and hands-on training for careers in areas including healthcare, needed training opportunities for students in their CNA program.

A representative from the Institute reached out to Leslie Johnson, executive director of Foulk Living. “We agreed to begin the partnership in 2023, and it went very well,” explains Johnson. “Dawn Institute’s campus president, Shawn Carney, contacted me later that year, telling me their students loved their experiences at Foulk Living.”

When the Dawn Career Institute planned to offer a new LPN program, they contacted Johnson to confirm that Foulk Living would agree to be a training location for that program, too. The program was approved, and the first LPN students started their orientation and training at Foulk Living in July 2024. They completed the training in December, and a second group of students began their training early this year.

How the Program Supports Students

The inaugural group of students were placed with the most seasoned LPNs who have worked at Foulk Living for years. “We knew our nurses would be excellent instructors and role models for the students,” says Johnson. “They gain valuable hands-on experience by shadowing these professionals in their role, with their RN instructor helping to guide them as well.” Students come in every Tuesday morning for six-hour shifts.

Tirus Macharia, director of nursing at Foulk Living, explains that the students learn numerous essential skills during the program. “Skills that the students learn include assisting residents with activities of daily living; taking, recording, and monitoring vital signs; administering medications as prescribed and monitoring for side effects; and collecting specimens for lab work,” he says. Students also learn how to monitor patient health and report changes in condition to supervising nurse or physician, and they provide patient and family education about health maintenance and treatments.

How the Partnership Benefits All Involved

Johnson describes the program as a four-way win, as students, staff, residents, and Foulk Living all benefit. The program has been very positive overall, and the LPNs are generous with their time and knowledge. In addition to the purposeful and important work that Foulk Living staff perform daily, they’re serving an additional meaningful role in training nursing students. Students also benefit by receiving clinical training from caring, talented professionals. Foulk Living residents enjoy visiting with the students during their training.

The program could lead to a career placement that benefits the students and Foulk Living. “Foulk Living, which is helping the LPN students develop and learn in a positive environment, have the opportunity to observe their abilities,” Johnson explains. “When the students complete their training, if Foulk Living has an open position, we hope to be able to recruit them to join our team. It’s challenging to hire LPNs, and us having this program will help us have a steady pool to recruit from when we have openings.”

The partnership provides nursing students with valuable training, and in doing so, it helps foster the next generation of nurses. “Our hope is to help be responsible for providing the senior living industry with a talented and dedicated pool of new professionals,” says Johnson.

For other senior care communities that might want to start similar partnerships, Johnson highlights the importance of getting buy-in from staff members. “Probably the most important component of this is that everyone on the Foulk Living team is enthusiastic and supportive of the program,” she says. Since the program requires staff members to commit time, energy, and patience, their genuine support and enthusiasm are integral to the partnership’s success and the value the students receive.

Paige Cerulli

Paige Cerulli is a contributing writer to i Advance Senior Care.