Isaac Wachira RN (left) pictured with his family at th Pinnacle Awards; image by Wachira

Meet Isaac Wachira RN, an African immigrant who came to America with just $250 dollars, educated himself and started a healthcare company that is helping to take care of people with intellectual disabilities and providing jobs for lots of people. He also runs a technical training center where he trains nurses to serve hospitals and related facilities.

Wachira founded Compassionate Care Technical Center (CCTC) in 2012. Originally from Kenya, Africa he came to the US fifteen years ago to pursue his education. He began at Knoxville College in 2001. Shortly after arriving in Knoxville he began serving those with developmental disabilities as a direct support person in and around Knoxville. He soon realized serving and helping others is his passion. Wachira later joined Pellissippi State Community College for pre-nursing classes. He also completed Blount Memorial’s Licensed Practical Nurse program in 2004 and graduated from Lincoln Memorial University’s Registered Nurse program in 2009.

CCTC began by offering certified nursing assistant training and has expanded to now offer EKG, Phlebotomy, Patient Care Technician, CPR and first aid training. In 2015 the center graduated 700 students.

The center offers a payment plan for tuition assisting those students who cannot pay the full tuition up front. They offer textbooks and classroom materials on loan at no additional fee. CCTC also accepts Project Grad Scholarships and vouchers from local career centers to assist those recently unemployed to obtain training and return to the work field in less than two months.

CCTC founded Compassionate Care Foundation in 2014 offering scholarships to underprivileged students whom would not have otherwise had the ability to attend training. Another unique aspect of Compassionate Care is our job placement rate. Compassionate Care holds job fairs for students to have access to available jobs.

The center has several local hospital and home health recruiters visit classrooms to discuss employment options with students prior to graduation. CCTC is also affiliated with Compassionate Care Home Health offering employment to many attending and graduating students. The center also offers a scholarship to employees whom have worked 1200 hours to complete training at no charge to them.

CCTC is located at 2424 Sutherland Ave, Knoxville. For more information, visit www.cnatrainingknox.com.