Published: Monday, November 14, 2022
LANSING, MI – Sparrow is giving community members and its own caregivers a fast-track option into the growing field of medical assistants with its newest class of apprentices through Lansing Community College.
Sparrow has launched its fifth innovative 24-week Medical Assistant Apprenticeship class, which provides one-on-one, hands-on instruction by Sparrow’s highly skilled caregivers. Sparrow covers the entire cost of the program, including tuition, books, scrubs, and wages during clinical hours.
Sparrow and the healthcare industry are in desperate need of medical assistants, multi-skilled professionals who often work at physician offices and help prepare patients to see their doctors.
This new class includes eight students who successfully met the testing requirements and have committed to serving as a Sparrow Medical Assistant for two years after graduation in March 2023. While the apprenticeship program began in January 2018, this is the first class to conduct all its clinical work at Sparrow Medical Group clinics instead of the classroom, and 26 Sparrow caregivers have volunteered to train the future healthcare workers.
Sparrow is working hard to address the need for medical assistants. To date, 53 graduates of the program currently work for Sparrow. However, there are still roughly 50 open MA positions across the health system.
“This is the future and companies must think about how to grow their own,” said Sherry Pfaff-Doody, Talent Acquisition Director of Sparrow Health System. “That is exactly what Sparrow Health System has been doing for the last five years with the Medical Assistant Apprentice program as well as our other trainee programs – building our future at Sparrow Health System.”
To learn more about Sparrow trainee programs or job openings, visit Careers.Sparrow.org.
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Sparrow is Mid-Michigan’s premier healthcare organization and includes hospitals in Lansing, Carson City, Charlotte, Ionia, and St. Johns, as well as Sparrow Specialty Hospital, Physicians Health Plan, Sparrow Care Network, Sparrow Medical Group and the Michigan Athletic Club. Sparrow is affiliated with Michigan Medicine through the Sparrow Children’s Center and with Michigan State University’s three human health colleges. Through these partnerships and the dedication of our 10,000 Caregivers, Sparrow pursues a vision to be nationally recognized as a leader in quality and Patient experience. For more information, visit Sparrow.org.