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June 30, 2022

FORT BRAGG, CA — This fall, Mendocino Coast Healthcare Foundation (MCHFoundation) is partnering with Sherwood Oaks Health Center and Adventist Health Mendocino Coast to launch the community’s first collaborative Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) Course.

Based on the 2017 National Center for Health Workforce Analysis, California has one of the highest nursing deficits in the country—a shortfall only amplified in rural regions like Mendocino County.

The Pacific Coast Collaborative CNA Course unites three of our community’s major healthcare organizations to address the local nursing shortage and offer an entry point to the healthcare workforce close to home. This pilot will graduate up to 25 new CNAs annually, provide experiential training within local healthcare organizations, and offer a model for future educational partnerships.

As program partners, Sherwood Oaks Health Center and Adventist Health Mendocino Coast will share the 100 hours of required clinical skills training, preceptorship, and testing, simultaneously increasing the recruitment of both facilities. MCHFoundation will provide financial support to purchase the curriculum and learning technology such as tablets and internet access, offer administrative support, and fund scholarships for CNA students.

CNAs facilitate up to 90% of direct patient care in residential facilities and support the entire care team in clinical and hospital settings. Therefore, a CNA course is a critical first step in enriching local offerings for a pathway into healthcare work.

Before the Pacific Coast Collaborative CNA Course, the closest CNA course available to our community was almost 60 miles away in Ukiah. This presented an enormous barrier for those with neither the time nor the resources to attend classes so far out of town. This course can become a model for local certification in the medical field with MCHFoundation providing ongoing financial aid and higher education scholarships for CNAs who wish to continue their career pathway into nursing.

At the Mendocino Coast Healthcare Foundation, our work to recruit, retain, and advocate for local nurses never stops. Our All In For Nurses program addresses the local nursing shortage by providing for the immediate and long-term needs of coastal caregivers and students—with scholarship awards, financial support, appreciation events, and educational programs. In addition to the Pacific Coast Collaborative CNA pilot, our program support includes partnerships with Mendocino College to offer more nursing prerequisite courses on the coast and with the hospital to coordinate internships for local students.

To learn more, please reach out to Lia Holbrook, Director of Community Initiatives, at [email protected].

MCHFoundation acquires new location in downtown Fort Bragg, California
made possible through a charitable gift.

Fort Bragg, CA—November 12^th, 2021—The Mendocino Coast Healthcare Foundation has purchased a new property in downtown Fort Bragg, California. This location will be the new home of MCHFoundation offices and will be open to the public.

In 2020, under leadership from the MCHFoundation Board and Executive Director, Mary Kate McKenna, CFRE, the Foundation broadened its mission to include support for all district healthcare facilities and services. This shift, from primarily supporting infrastructure and equipment needs at the hospital, to supporting heath and wellness needs across the spectrum of caregivers, clinics and support services, has both increased the impact of MCHFoundation on community health and the ability to raise funds in support of their mission.

For nearly three decades, MCHFoundation has maintained offices on the hospital campus and has been somewhat invisible to the public. When the Foundation was first formed, its mission was solely in support of the hospital and its needs, so its location on their campus was fitting.

Through a charitable gift from Dr. Tom Carine and Mrs. Nina Carine, longtime MCHFoundation supporters, the purchase of the property at 130 N Main Street, in Fort Bragg, was made possible. The new location will bring the Foundation closer to the public, through physical access to the MCHFoundation offices and staff and higher visibility to visitors.

“During the past year, we have been able to support a wide range of health and wellness entities that care for our community. From our volunteer fire departments to programs that help our local students access healthy snacks, we are reaching more of our community in support of our mission,” Mary Kate McKenna, CFRE stated. “Our work with the hospital, the clinics and the local nurses that care for our community continues to grow alongside our growing outreach and support of our community health and wellness.”

Over the past months, MCHFoundation has raised over $250,000 with the launch of the All In For Nurses Initiative to support the critical needs surrounding nurse retention and recruitment.

To date, the All In For Nurses Initiative and surrounding campaigns has disbursed nearly $20,000 in direct scholarships and awards to current and prospective nurses, demonstrating excellence and expansion in their field. As well, the All In For Nurses has dedicated another $40,000 to community projects that support increased resources for coastal nurses, respite and relief meals, and activities for our local healthcare providers.

The new location, that will be home to MCHFoundation, will be easily accessible to the community at large and for some, may be the first time they have noticed this non-profit, that has been working in support of community health and wellness for over 30 years.

“MCHFoundation is a community non-profit that has distributed over $10M in direct support of the health and wellness of residents and visitors to our beautiful coast,” explained Charlene McAllister, MCHFoundation Board Vice President. “We have been here all along, fulfilling our mission in this amazing community through the generous gifts of our supporters. Now, we have an opportunity to interact with the public by creating a new space designed to help us understand and serve our community healthcare needs better.”

The new MCHFoundation offices will be open to the public and will offer a direct way for people to learn more about the essential resources MCHFoundation provides, from being the largest volunteer organization on the coast to helping high school students pursue healthcare careers, MCHFoundation supports a diverse set of needs for the Mendocino coastal communities.

“With the new offices, we hope that people will stop in to learn about everything from the new classrooms we funded at the college, to the purchase of critical equipment for the hospital and clinics, to Winesong events and volunteer opportunities,” said Mary Kate MacKenna, CFRE, “Everyone will be welcome and we know, if you come to visit, you will quickly learn why MCHFoundation has been so successful in its mission.”

The new MCHFoundation offices will not be open until 2022. The current MCHFoundation offices on the hospital campus will continue to be home to the Foundation staff until the move.

The Mendocino Coast Healthcare Foundation supports organizations that care for the health and wellness of the Mendocino coastal communities. To learn more about MCHFoundation and its mission, visit their website at www.MCHFoundation.org. To support the All In For Nurses Initiative with a donation, reach out directly to MCHFoundation at (707) 961-4671 or use their online donation form on their website.