Dedication Ceremony Held for New Crombie CNA Training Academy

By Chuck N. Baker 

(Boulder City, Nevada) —The U.S. is projected to experience a shortage of Registered Nurses (RNs) that is expected to intensify as Baby Boomers age and the need for health care grows. Compounding the problem is the fact that nursing schools across the country are struggling to expand capacity to meet the rising demand for care given the national move toward healthcare reform. 

Nevada has joined with other states that have come up with different types of solutions to help alleviate current and future shortage projections for nurses and nursing assistants who wish to enter the field. The Nevada Department of Veterans Services recently dedicated the PFC David “Nick” Crombie Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) Training Academy, located on the grounds of the Southern Nevada State Veterans Home in Boulder City. The Crombie Academy is a FREE CNA training program.   

The academy is named in honor of 19-year-old Army Private First-Class David “Nick” Crombie from Winnemucca, Nevada. Crombie, a combat medic, was killed when an improvised explosive device detonated near his Humvee during combat operations in Ramadi, Iraq in 2006. Crombie’s brother, Jason Laybourn, was proudly in attendance at the dedication.  

Southern Nevada State Veterans Home Administrator Eli Quinones spoke eloquently about the formation of the training academy and thanked elected and appointed officials in attendance. Discussing the academy, he asked rhetorically, “Why do we do this?” He explained there is an “urgent need” for health care workers in Nevada and across the nation. He noted the initial class had 10 graduates, and the second class had 11. “And they signed a contract that they will stay with us for the next 20 years,” he joked, if somewhat optimistically.  

Keynote speaker Governor Steve Sisolak praised the nursing home for its five-star professional rating. He said that “by all accounts Nick was a remarkable young man … the academy is aptly named, and Crombie’s enthusiasm will live on.”  

That enthusiasm will be carried out by the new Certified Nursing Assistants. It will be illustrated as they perform basic restorative services and basic nursing services directed aimed at the safety, comfort, personal hygiene, mental health, and protection of patient rights in accordance with the Patient’s Bill of Rights. It will all be done within the authorized scope of practice specified in the Nurse Practice Act. They serve at the direction and under the immediate supervision of a Registered Nurse or Licensed Practical Nurse. 

Boulder City Mayor Kiernan McManis was also in attendance. He noted he had past family members who worked in nursing, and congratulated the graduates saying, “You have the world ahead of you.”  

A plaque was unveiled at the dedication featuring an image of Crombie, and the words, “Nick will forever serve as an example to women and men everywhere beginning their careers as health care professionals.”  

For more information on the Crombie Academy and eligibility requirements, go  HERE.  

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