HITEC places apprentices at Fletcher Allen

Fletcher Allen Health Care celebrated 15 newly trained health care support apprentices Thursday.

The apprentices, who ranged from 18 to 50 years old, officially started employment at the hospital on Monday as full-time hospital staffers after completing eight weeks of training with the Vermont Healthcare and Information Technology Education Center Inc., or Vermont HITEC.

Vermont HITEC is a Williston nonprofit that works to educate, train and employ Vermonters in various fields. More than 100 people applied for the 15 slots.

The apprentices will serve as practice support specialists or registration representatives, earning $11.75 an hour plus full benefits. They will be reviewed in six months, and again after one year. The apprentices may receive merit-based raises to bring wages up to $16 an hour, said Gerry Ghazi, president of Vermont HITEC.

Vermont HITEC, which received a $325,000 work force development grant through efforts from Sen. Patrick Leahy, also ran a program to train 20 medical transcriptionists for the hospital in 2005, Ghazi said.

"I am so proud of these individuals who have successfully completed this intense program," said Fletcher Allen President and CEO Melinda Estes. "We are pleased to welcome them as our employees."

The graduates are: Katherine Elizabeth Bates, Essex Junction; Eric Bellew, Burlington; Alicia Cheam, Winooski; James Cueto, Colchester; Lauren Dudley, Fairfax; Alissa Graves, St. Albans; Tiffany Johnson, Winooski; Maxine Kirkland, Essex Junction; Karen Lefebvre, Colchester; Stephanie Machia, Huntington; Melissa Mercy, Essex Junction; Caitlin Miller, Montpelier; Maida Omerovic, Burlington; Brian Treffinger, Essex; Rachel Wehner, Fairfax.

Contact Dan McLean at 651-4877 or dmclean@bfp.burlingtonfreepress.com