$314,103 will fund customized training for 300 UHS employees
(left to right) DCTC President Ronald E. Thomas, UHS Executive Vice President Diana Vance-Bryan, MJSP Program Coordinator Jodie Greising, MnSCU Associate Vice Chancellor Michael Murphy
The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development awarded Dakota County Technical College and Universal Hospital Services a $314,103 Minnesota Job Skills Partnership grant to train 300 current and new UHS account representatives, technicians, equipment processors and managers in a number of critical technology-driven areas related to health care equipment and services.
A grant-signing ceremony was held Monday, Feb. 14, 2011, at the UHS Corporate Office in Edina, Minn. Walter T. Chesley, UHS senior vice president of human resources, training and development, greeted attendees at the outset of the ceremony. Chesley reported that UHS is looking forward to collaborating with MJSP and DCTC to develop customized training content and performance support videos for UHS employees to use on mobile devices. “Mobile and Web integrated learning content is the wave of the future and will position our UHS teammates to better service our customers,” he said.
UHS Senior Vice President Walter T. Chesley
An industry leader in medical equipment management and service solutions, UHS has worked with health care professionals since 1939. UHS is heralded across the health care industry for exceeding client expectations in the following areas:
- Customer Service and Delivery
- Equipment Expertise
- Knowledge Sharing
UHS serves more than 8,600 clients in all 50 states from more than 80 district offices, including locations in Edina, Rochester, Duluth and Minneapolis. UHS owns or manages more than a half million pieces of medical equipment across a wide range of categories, including critical care, patient monitoring, therapy surfaces and beds, respiratory therapy and more. The two-year program funded by the MJSP grant will help UHS continue leading the way in the delivery of cost-effective medical equipment, supplies and services to health care providers. Coursework will cover:
- Green Process Controls
- Patient Handling Processes
- Advanced Customer Service
- Clinical Protocols
- Wireless and Media
- Apps Production
- Competency Verification Systems
DCTC will use grant funds to develop new curricula, redesign current programs to take advantage of emerging technologies, and work with mobile media experts to create a new technology certificate focused on delivering applications to the mobile market in UHS.
DCTC President Ronald E. Thomas
DCTC President Ronald E. Thomas, Ph.D., delivered the signing ceremony’s welcome and acknowledgments as well as the educational perspective on the grant. Thomas sees enormous potential in mobile apps at a national level both in industry and higher education. “DCTC is working with the business community to better serve an increasingly mobile society,” he said. “Handheld devices are made-to-order for online learning and real-time information transfers in the field.”
MnSCU Associate Vice Chancellor Michael Murphy
Michael Murphy, Ph.D., associate vice chancellor for strategic partnerships and workforce development at Minnesota State Colleges and Universities, delivered the statewide higher learning perspective. Murphy commended the grant, noting that it brings together DCTC’s entrepreneurial approach to technical education and UHS’s nationally-renowned health care expertise. “We are really seeing a convergence of advanced technologies through the MJSP grant,” he said. “UHS and DCTC are ahead of the curve.”
UHS Executive Vice President Diana Vance-Bryan
Diana Vance-Bryan, UHS executive vice president of operations, talked about the grant from the industry perspective. “We are excited about the opportunity to collaborate with MJSP and DCTC,” Vance-Bryan said. “The grant dollars will offer programming beneficial to our employees as well as to the communities they serve. Mobile media will help our technicians in the field continue to offer exceptional medical equipment and services to hospitals and other health care providers. UHS delivers what our clients need when they need it—and mobile app technology is an ideal way for us to continue providing unmatched world-class service.”
MJSP Program Coordinator Jodie Greising
An MJSP program coordinator, Jodie Greising took part in the signing ceremony after speaking about the grant from an economic perspective. “Through this grant, UHS and DCTC are taking an innovative approach by leveraging mobile media technology,” Greising said. “We feel the grant will give UHS employees the advanced training they need while expanding the college’s capacity to offer higher education opportunities in emerging technologies.”
Pat McQuillan, the DCTC director of trade and industry, reported that the college will be delivering a very high level of training thanks to the MJSP grant. “The courses will focus on the actual development of new mobile apps,” McQuillan said. “The new information and knowledge acquired will be a boon to UHS and DCTC as well as future clients of the college.”
For more information about the MJSP grant and DCTC Customized Training, contact:
- Pat McQuillan
DCTC Customized Training Director of Trade and Industry
651-423-8318
