UNE News Express | US Health Lifestyle
With an ever older and ever more diverse American population, there is a shortage of daily care and nursing staff for the elderly, while demand for multilingual caregivers is growing.
In cooperation with the Ethnic Media Services CalGrows Fellowship Project, Jennifer Liu, Editor-in-Chief of UNE News Express, interviews Edmond Leung, a Certified Nursing Assistant at the cardiac surgical unit of Sequoia Hospital in Redwood City, California, as part of an in-depth, in-language Chinese investigation of the current situation and future of the nursing industry in the U.S. through dialogue with front-line professionals, emphasizing how programs like CalGROWS are opening opportunities for multilingual caregivers.
Leung introduced his own training and work experience in CNA nursing work. He said that his major in college was English teaching and psychology, and he also worked in Hong Kong for a period of time. Later, because his mother got Alzheimer’s disease, and he didn’t know how to take care of the elderly, he decided to study nursing.
He said that he had been working as a CNA for three months, and felt that being
able to take care of patients and watch them slowly recover was a very fulfilling thing. At
the same time, he was also studying nursing courses and hoped to obtain a nursing license
after two years of study.
Because of his original foundation in English and psychology, it was helpful for him to
study nursing courses. But he also encouraged Chinese people with language barriers not
to be discouraged, as programs like CalGROWS can provide help and guidance.
He said that currently in the United States, CNA is a relatively stable, professional and
promising job. He is now mainly working a night shift, so that he can take care of his
family and his daughters’ lives while continuing to earn money.
CalGROWS is an expansive state program that allows home health workers like Mohammed to earn up to $6,000 for learning and using new skills. However, time is running out for caregivers to sign up, as the program ends in August.
Caregivers can sign up for the program online at CalGROWS.org, by phone at (888) 991-7234 or by email at help@calgrows.org.
