Foundation Health Partners offers community survey and job fair this week

FAIRBANKS, Alaska (KTVF) - Healthcare workers are in high demand across the country, and Fairbanks is no exception.

This week Foundation Health Partners is holding an event for those interested in a career in the healthcare field, along with a survey to better find what the needs are in the community.

For this, Foundation Health Partners is teaming up with the Interior Community Health Center and the State of Alaska Department of Health.

Carol Anthony works as the Community Partnerships Project Manager for Foundation Health Partners. She says the survey is almost like the community 3-year checkup. “It’s how we learn from a community perspective how people are doing health-wise in a number of areas in their life.”

Anthony said the process for the survey started around a year ago, using national data along with state data and local information to get a better understanding of how Fairbanks “weighs out” in terms of how healthy the community is.

The short survey asks questions such as “what is your overall health,” and how accessible or inaccessible various services and providers are in the community, among other questions.

“We use that to balance, again, what community members tell us and that’s where our survey comes in,” Anthony explained.

Anthony also opined that Fairbanks is a town that really likes to collaborate. “People who work in the systems of healthcare tend to do that really well here,” she said.

In a survey conducted in 2019, the team conducting it was able to identify four areas of focus in the community: senior care, mental health and substance use, Adverse Childhood Experiences or Trauma (ACES), and finally what Anthony described as a “health bucket” with many factors that contribute to wellness.

The survey will be available until October 14, 2022, and can be found on the Foundation Health Partners website: https://www.foundationhealth.org/. A direct link to the survey can be found here: bit.ly/fairbanks22

Personal information will not be shared, and there are prizes available for winning contestants.

Another event taking place this Friday is a job fair for those who may be interested in employment in the healthcare field.

Nicole Welch works as the Chief Human Resource Officer with Foundation Health Partners. Welch said Foundation Health Partners’ focus at the job fair will be hiring support positions in clinical and non-clinical roles. “These are things like medical billing, registration, environmental services, nutrition services, medical records, and in the clinical side we are looking for certified nursing assistants, medical assistants, pharmacy techs, and phlebotomists.”

Welch said there are opportunities for people who are interested in healthcare but have never worked in a healthcare setting before, with starting wages at $20 an hour.

She also noted there will be in-person interviews at the job fair, so those interested are encouraged to bring a resume’ or basic information regarding prior work history.

The event will take place from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. and the entrance to the job fair will be at the FMH South Tower doors.

A Facebook link to the event can be found here: https://www.facebook.com/events/494297958799232/?acontext=%7B%22event_action_history%22%3A[]%7D

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