Sutter Roseville Medical Center CEO Tammy Powers, left, hugs Sierra Gartrell at the Sierra College Workforce Summit in June 2025. Gartrell, a product of the Sierra College-Sutter Health workforce partnership, had just announced she’d been hired by the hospital as a registered nurse.

By Katie Durham, Vitals contributor

A graduate of the Sierra College Nursing Program and now a critical care nurse in the trauma neuro ICU at Sutter Roseville Medical Center, Sierra Gartrell is a product of the Sierra College-Sutter Health workforce partnership. Her story illustrates the power of aligned goals between healthcare and education — where hands-on training, personal experience and organizational investment help shape the next generation of caregivers.

Partnerships like this create accessible career pathways and build a skilled, diverse workforce rooted in the communities Sutter Health serves. Gartrell is one of many students whose path was shaped by this purposeful partnership.

A Turning Point in Care

Gartrell knew she wanted to work in healthcare as early as high school. At the time, she was quietly navigating an eating disorder and learning to accept help, even as her health declined.

The turning point for Gartrell came during a visit to Sutter Health, when a nurse saw her pain and offered compassion.

“I’ll always remember the exact quote: ‘You deserve to recover. You deserve help no matter if people can see it or not.’ That was the turning point,” she recalls. “I had someone else see that I was struggling and believe in me enough to help and advocate for me.”

From that moment forward, Gartrell worked toward her recovery with clinicians at Sutter Health who treated her as a whole person — not just a diagnosis. That experience inspired her to pursue a career where she could return that same compassion to her community.

“I’ve never been touchy-feely,” she said. “But when the nurse held my hand and believed in me, I knew I wanted to do the same for others. I wanted to be the person who helps people feel heard and not ashamed.”

Strength in Story and Strategy

Gartrell’s story is one of resilience — and also reflects a broader workforce strategy.

Sutter Health’s investment in workforce development focuses on creating opportunities for healthcare professionals who mirror and understand the communities they serve, often by hiring people who’ve been in the patients’ shoes.

In June 2023, Gartrell joined Sutter Roseville Medical Center as a unit secretary nursing assistant while completing the Sierra College Nursing Program. She balanced two shifts a week at Sutter Roseville and a full course load of lectures and clinicals.

“All of my preceptors, especially in the telemetry unit, really stood out when it came to instruction,” she said. “They encouraged discussion, shared their knowledge and helped our cohort find answers when we had department-specific questions.”

Gartrell chose Sutter Roseville for its high-acuity environment, knowing it would prepare her for her goal of becoming a critical care nurse. The team at Sutter Roseville supported her academic journey and challenged her to grow professionally.

On her way to earning her bachelor’s in nursing degree at California State University, Sacramento, Gartrell shared her story on stage at the Sierra College Workforce Summit in June 2025, where she also announced her pending acceptance to join Sutter Health as a registered nurse.

“I feel recovered. I’m on my own, and I feel strong,” she told those gathered at the summit.

The Value of Partnership

Community health investments play a critical role in improving the well-being of the populations we serve, particularly those facing the greatest challenges. Sutter Health’s External Affairs team leads this work by collaborating with hospitals across the system and with local organizations to set investment priorities and expand programs that increase access to healthcare, mental health services and workforce development opportunities.

Workforce development is not only a priority in community health, but also across Sutter Health’s hospitals. Academic partnerships, like the one with Sierra College, are built on a shared purpose: to cultivate a skilled and diverse workforce to address healthcare worker shortages and build stronger communities.

“By investing in education and training, we ensure that our patients receive care from professionals who are not only clinically competent, but also culturally attuned to the community’s needs,” said Tammy Powers, CEO of Sutter Roseville Medical Center.

“I had the opportunity to speak with Sierra at the Sierra Workforce Summit, just moments before she went on stage and shared that she had been offered a job at our hospital,” Powers added. “It was such a full-circle moment; not just for Sierra, but for all of us who believe in investing in local talent. Supporting and mentoring students like her is exactly why we continue to strengthen partnerships like the one we have with Sierra College.”

These investments help remove barriers to education and career advancement; they create more pathways for more students, especially in under-resourced communities. With a national shortage of allied health workers, building a strong and inclusive pipeline is more critical than ever.

Sutter Health’s support of Sierra College also includes:

• The Sierra College Foundation’s Endow-a-Bed Program so that basic needs are not a barrier to students’ pursuit of education.
• Awarding four students with scholarships in 2025 through the annual Sutter scholarship program.
• Internship opportunities for nursing students at Sutter care facilities.

These partnerships are rooted in a shared commitment to building a future-ready healthcare workforce. As part of Sutter Health’s not-for-profit mission, these investments epitomize Sutter’s community benefit work.

“Through the power of Community Health investments and local partnerships, we’re helping people imagine a future in healthcare — some for the very first time,” said Kelly Brenk, senior director of Community Health at Sutter Health. “When we invest in trusted community partners doing this work, we create access, awareness and opportunity where it didn’t exist before.”

A Message from Healthcare’s Next Generation

In healthcare, caregivers and clinicians are with patients during their most vulnerable moments. Advocacy, compassion and integrity are the attributes that Gartrell uses to describe the next generation of healthcare workers. Preparing the future workforce to embody those attributes requires education, mentorship and opportunity, and that is something that Gartrell believes starts with trust.

“Trust in this upcoming workforce. Trust in our generation,” Gartrell said. “Whether we’re fresh out of high school or going back to school later in life, give us the tools and support we need. We’re ready to rise to the occasion and shape the future of healthcare in our communities.”

Gartrell’s story is one of strength, healing and purpose. And it’s only the beginning.