20 members of the Wisconsin National Guard will be joining the staff at Rocky Knoll in the next week. The announcement was made by Sheboygan County Administrator Adam Payne on Wednesday.
The arrival of troops at Rocky Knoll is part of a statewide rollout to aid area hospitals who continue to feel the pressure due to COVID-19, and was part of an initiative announced in January by Governor Tony Evers to emplace Wisconsin National Guard members as certified nursing assistants.
In making the announcement, Adam Payne said “We thank Governor Evers and the National Guard for providing emergency staffing to our local health care system. The National Guard support will help ensure that our community will have access to the care they need, increase our hospitals capacity, and take some pressure off of our hard-working health care workers.”
The 20 guard members are scheduled to arrive on Monday, February 21, and will serve a 6-9 week term as temporary nurse aides/certified nursing assistants within Rocky Knoll’s post-acute/rehabilitation and long-term care units.
The relief comes as worker shortages have forced reductions in the number of patients that nursing homes can accept, putting more pressure on area hospitals and making it harder for families to select a nursing home for their loved ones.
County Board Chairman Vernon Koch said “We are very proud of Rocky Knoll’s track-record of providing five-star quality care for the community. This assistance reinforces our existing staff and provides hospitals some relief by opening up more beds for residents to remain in Sheboygan County for acute and post-acute care.”
