Villagomez attended on Thursday night the pinning ceremony of the graduates of the High School Nursing Assistantship Program of Saipan Southern High School.
“You can trust that we at the Department of Public Health and all our collaborators will support you and your fellow nursing classmates along the way in making your dreams to become registered nurses a reality,” he told the 11 nursing assistant graduates.
Villagomez said Public Health will employ some of the 11 graduates as nursing assistants.
“Please continue striving ahead and keep climbing up that ladder by continuing your nursing education at the college level,” he said.
He said nurses are the backbone of the island’s healthcare and “we need all of you to continue on with your schooling in nursing so that you can become our future registered nurses.”
Melanie Cruz, daughter of Milagros and Domingo Cruz, was awarded first honor .
In an interview, Cruz said she will pursue her nursing education at the University of Nevada.
The other graduates were Jove Jenn Taman (second honor), Summer Palacios, Mereylen Denora, and Coquina Teregeyo.
The four other graduates received special awards: Kathleen Laurio for excellence in caring; John Raymond Sablan for excellence in communication;
Melanie Ramon for excellence in professionalism; and Nicole Reyes for excellence in holistic care.
The ceremony held at the Pacific Islands Club was attended by the 2010 and 2012 nursing assistantship classes, SSHS principal Jesse Tudela, nursing instructor Leticia Reyes, Public School System associate commissioner Jackie Quitugua, former SSHS principal and now Marianas High School principal Craig H. Garison and other PSS officials.
When the two-year nursing assistant program was established on Feb. 2010, 22 students from SSHS, the pilot school, joined it.
The program is offered as a fifth period subject in the11th grade.
The students are required to complete clinical and lecture hours, including two hours of clinical sessions at the Commonwealth Health Center.
Villagomez said the collaborative effort between his department, PSS, the Workforce Investment Agency and Northern Marianas College’s Area Health Education Center was critical in making the nursing assistant program possible.
“The main goal here is to build a well-trained and educated local nursing workforce for the CNMI and, more importantly, to ensure quality healthcare for our people,” he said.
