CareAcademy Announces Strategic Acquisition of Assets of NextStep, a Learning Platform for Certified Nursing Assistants

BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--CareAcademy, the leading care enablement platform for home care and home health organizations, today announced that it has completed the strategic acquisition of assets from NextStep, an innovative digital healthcare training and job placement company for certified nursing assistants (CNAs). CareAcademy will acquire NextStep’s video-based content and learning management technology to expand its footprint as the training solution of choice across the caregiver ecosystem.

Numerous studies have shown the U.S. healthcare system is in crisis, facing massive staffing shortages exacerbated by the global pandemic. NextStep is a blended-learning and recruiting platform for certifying and placing nursing assistants in new careers in Colorado, Oregon and Washington. With this acquisition, CareAcademy is strengthening its offerings to create amazing opportunities for new and existing healthcare workers to level up and become CNAs, a nationally recognized and transferable healthcare worker role. With this new certification training solution, healthcare facilities can more readily recruit and retain top talent while workers can advance their skills and deliver optimal, quality care.

“CareAcademy has always centered caregiver education as the path forward in both attracting new talent to the healthcare industry and improving their future opportunities, and NextStep’s deep expertise in training for nursing assistants builds upon our strong foundation,” said Helen Adeosun, CEO and founder, CareAcademy. “Offering nursing assistant certification enables CareAcademy to enter new market segments and deepen opportunities, especially within skilled nursing facilities, assisted living facilities and vocational schools. Together, we can transition more people to the caregiving profession to meet the overwhelming demand for care and set them on a path for continued professional growth.”

"We're delighted to strike this agreement with CareAcademy and its extraordinary leadership team," said Chris Hedrick, co-founder and CEO of NextStep. "The NextStep learning platform and nursing assistant course content will help CareAcademy advance our crucial shared mission – expanding opportunity for the next generation of frontline healthcare professionals."

CareAcademy’s mission is to accelerate the world’s transition to a caregiver-centric healthcare system by empowering caregivers to provide the best care possible. NextStep content and training solutions will be incorporated into CareAcademy’s online platform and rolled out to customers later this year.

To learn more, visit careacademy.com.

About CareAcademy

CareAcademy provides high-quality, state-approved training for home care agencies, home health agencies, franchise systems and payors that increases learner knowledge for better health outcomes. More than 350,000 learners have completed more than 2 million classes with CareAcademy. With easy-to-use, web-based courses and a robust administrator platform, CareAcademy offers education and compliance solutions for home care and home health organizations of all sizes, from small agencies to multi-state enterprises. To learn more, visit careacademy.com.

About NextStep

NextStep is an innovative health care education and job placement company helping solve the accelerating caregiver crisis in the United States. We train and place workers displaced by automation and artificial intelligence with respected long-term care providers, benefiting both. NextStep’s blended-learning nursing assistant program gives learners the opportunity to start a new, rewarding career and provides employers a solution to their critical workforce needs.