Trident Health provides $25k grant to YWCA Charleston for student healthcare program

Charleston, S.C. — Trident Health, a member of the HCA Healthcare family, is excited to partner with the YWCA of Greater Charleston to support high school students exploring a career in healthcare.

A $25,000 grant will be used to create a Health Professions track for high school girls as part of the YWCA’s “She Strong” curriculum. 30 students from Lowcountry Accelerated Academy will be introduced to four career tracks in healthcare; Allied health, Clinical care, Administration, and Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM).

“We know what good the YWCA does for women and girls throughout the Lowcountry and this seed money is a start towards deepening our collective engagement for the benefit of our community,” said Christina Oh, President and Chief Executive Officer of Trident Health. “Personally, I can’t wait to see these students come to our facilities to learn,” Oh said.

“Students will be able to learn first-hand with on-site filed trips to various hospitals and physician practices,” said CJ Gathers, Director of Programs at the YWCA of Charleston. “They will get to ask questions about a wide-range of careers in healthcare, from nurses and physicians to administrators and practice managers. They will shadow professionals and hear about jobs they may not know exist and when they complete their education — are quite attainable,” adds Gathers.

After a period of mentorship and career mapping, students will leave the program with a clear path forward and understanding of what education, training, and certification is needed to reach their goals.

“Programs like this create a feeder population of diverse students to support all kinds of roles at local hospitals, including nurses,” said Oh. “We feel this is a great investment in our future healthcare leaders.”

The HCA Healthcare Foundation’s Healthier Tomorrow Fund (HTF) is a community impact fund designed to support innovative initiatives focused on addressing high priority community needs and advancing health equity.