They must be teaching some good students! http://www.delmarvanow.com/article/2...st%20Press%7cp

When Indian River High School sophomore Krystal Gramley visited her 89-year-old neighbor in March, she had no idea lessons taught in her certified nursing assistant course would pay huge dividends.

Gramley noticed that the woman, who was recovering from injuries sustained in a car accident, had a bulging vein on the side of her neck. Having been taught by her nursing instructor that this could be a symptom of a serious health problem, Gramley contacted the woman's nurse and eventually called 911.

The neighbor was taken to the hospital and treated for acute congestive heart failure with fluid in her lungs and around her heart. The condition could have been fatal if left untreated.

"To be able to help somebody and apply what I learned was cool," Gramley said. "I feel proud."
Indian River High School nursing instructor Denise Morris said Gramley spared the woman a long and painful recovery and may have saved her life.

"It's pretty neat that she remembered that," Morris said. "I'm very proud of Krystal. She applied what she learned."

Indian River's certified nursing assistant program began last fall and has attracted more than 150 students during the 2010-2011 school year. IRHS offers numerous curricular pathways in which students take a series of sequential courses in a chosen major. Certified nursing assistant will become its own pathway beginning in September 2011.

"It's huge. It's growing faster than I anticipated," Morris said. "A lot has happened this year. The district has been very supportive in getting this up and running."

The idea for the program originated with the school's Perkins Advisory Committee. Federal Perkins funding is earmarked for vocational education and schools must seek input from the community before expending the grants.

"The community determines what pathways we have," Assistant Principal Bennett Murray said. "We had community members mention that we really needed this program."

After an extensive feasibility study, the certified nursing program was implemented last fall.
A special classroom in the school was equipped with hospital beds, wheelchairs, lifts, laptop computers, cabinets and other medical equipment.

"It took two years to plan this," said Murray, who noted the large health care industry in Southern Delaware has made the pathway especially beneficial. "Right now, it's really exceeded my expectations. I think the instructor is super."

During the four-year pathway, students will learn the basics of medical care, become certified in CPR and First Aid and participate in on-the-job training with actual health care professionals. Students will also have the opportunity to take the CNA exam.

Those who complete the program will graduate high school as certified nursing assistants.

Students who attain CNA certification will immediately be able to join the health care workforce at various entry-level positions.

They will also possess the prerequisite skills and knowledge to pursue a college degree in nursing.
"They have immediate possibilities for income and career readiness," Morris said.

A graduate of Indian River High School, Morris has taken great pride in seeing the program thrive in its first year.

"I have a personal interest in seeing this school do well," she said.