Julian Alvarez, commissioner representing labor for the Texas Workforce Commission, on Wednesday presented a $1.7 million check to DHR Health and Workforce Solutions Cameron at a ceremony held at the soon-to-open DHR hospital in Brownsville.
The Skills Development Fund grant will be used to provide nurses with training and tools to “better serve the healthcare needs of the Rio Grande Valley,” said DHR Health spokeswoman Marci Martinez. The areas of training will include case management, neonatal resuscitation, diabetes management, trauma care and oncology, she said.
DHR Health is headquartered in Edinburg. Its flagship hospital there houses the only Level 1 trauma center in the Valley. DHR Brownsville will feature a 24-hour emergency room, at least 60 patient beds and state-of-the-art operating rooms, Martinez said, adding that the hospital will offer inpatient and outpatient services. DHR Brownsville first phase is expected to bring at least 200 jobs to the area, she said.
Laura Longoria of Workforce Solutions Cameron said the Skills Development Fund “presents us with another means to engage a business with the workforce system and solidify our relationship with a specific industry, like health care.”
“These grant funds go a long way toward meeting the employer’s identified training needs and support of their efforts to elevate the skill sets of their current workforce and to create and expand career pathway opportunities,” she said.
DHR Health CEO Manish Singh M.D. said the company’s aim is to provide “safe and exception care to this region as it continues to grow and prosper.”
“I’m excited to be joining forces with Workforce Solutions Cameron to continue to improve the workforce in this region and create an empowering environment for current and future healthcare workers,” he said.
Mayor Trey Mendez said DHR has “done some great things in Edinburg.”
“Now I want to start talking about the great things they’re going to do in Brownsville,” he said.
Alvarez noted that the Texas Workforce Commission had already awarded Skills Development Fund grants to a number of entities in Brownsville, including Creative Liquid Coatings Inc. (formerly CK Technologies), Keppel AmFELS, Steel Coast and Valley Regional Medical Center.
“The investment that you all are putting in your community is amazing, and your unemployment rate in this town and Cameron County and this town is continuing to drop. … I will tell you, if you’re looking for opportunities, this is the place to go.”
