Bowling Green, Ky. - T.J. Samson Community Hospital in Glasgow has partnered with Western Kentucky University's Center for Training and Development (CTD) to introduce the T.J. Samson Community Hospital Leadership Academy.

Sixty employees of the hospital will go through the training which will meet once a month for 12 months.

Dwayne Moss, CEO of T.J. Samson, explains why his organization is creating this program. "The goal of the T.J. Samson Leadership Academy is to develop and enhance the leadership skills of our employees. Our hospital has enjoyed a long relationship with Western and we are very excited about working with the Center for Training and Development in bringing this level of training to our staff," Moss said.

The curriculum for the T.J. Samson Leadership Academy was developed based on results from a survey distributed to hospital's department directors. Course topics will include Effective Listening, Dealing with Difficult People, Resolving Team Conflict, Enhancing Quality Service and Team Development.

Patients at the hospital won't be the only ones benefiting from this training, according to Beverly Mortimer, MA, RN, Director of Career Development for T.J. Samson. "This partnership with Western will build skills that assist the staff in caring for each other as well as the patients and their families," Mortimer said.

"It is an exciting opportunity to be able to work with T.J. Samson in creating the Leadership Academy," said Manon Pardue, director of the CTD. "The Center for Training and Development supports the training needs of business and industry in South Central Kentucky by providing on-site employee development programs. We serve as a link between businesses and professional trainers from WKU."

The Center for Training and Development is a unit of the WKU Division of Extended Learning and Outreach. DELO delivers quality credit and non-credit educational opportunities to individuals, organizations and the public using flexible and accessible formats. DELO facilitates outreach efforts by partnering with University faculty, departments and colleges to meet the diverse needs of WKU's local, regional and virtual communities in responsive and engaging ways. For more information on DELO and the Center for Training and Development, go to www.wku.edu/delo.

For more information about T.J. Samson Community Hospital, go to www.tjsamson.org.

More WKU news is available at www.wku.edu. If you'd like to receive WKU news via e-mail, send a message to WKUNews@wku.edu.

For information, contact Bill Oldham at (270) 745-1926

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