MCC Receives $491,855 USDA Delta Health Care Services Grant

Madisonville Community College (MCC) has received a $491,855 USDA Delta Health Care Services Grant to strengthen the surgical technology and Surgical Assisting workforce pipeline across a 10-county region of western Kentucky.

The project addresses a critical shortage of surgical technologists identified by employers through the Kentucky Chamber Foundation’s West Kentucky Healthcare Collaborative.

The initiative focuses on three priorities: expanding recruitment into surgical technology careers, creating a state-of-the-art training environment, and developing more flexible educational pathways for adult learners and incumbent health care workers.

Grant funding will support the creation of an advanced surgical technology laboratory on MCC’s Health Sciences Campus featuring modern operating room equipment, including a clinically representative da Vinci robotic surgery system. Students will gain hands-on experience with technologies increasingly used in hospitals throughout the region.

“This investment will help us meet a critical workforce need while creating new opportunities for students across western Kentucky,” said Cindy Kelley, chancellor of Madisonville Community College. “By partnering with regional health care providers, we can provide cutting-edge training, expand access for adult learners and strengthen the pipeline of skilled surgical technologists and surgical assistants who are essential to high-quality patient care.”

Partners in the project include Hopkinsville Community College, Baptist Health Deaconess Madisonville, Deaconess Henderson Hospital, Owensboro Health Muhlenberg Community Hospital, Jennie Stuart Health, Trigg County Hospital and the Kentucky Chamber Foundation.