The COVID-19 pandemic has triggered national awareness for more long-term care options, having wreaked havoc in nursing homes, assisted living facilities, and group homes.
For Nicole Laborde, a registered nurse and CEO of Ideal Home Healthcare Services and the Ideal School of Allied Healthcare in Hauppauge, New York, these unfortunate circumstances would not lead to the collapse of her enterprises.
Laborde’s humble beginnings started to unfold as a young teen, having immigrated to the United States from Haiti without her parents. She came to America with very little funds to support herself, but her ambition and determination led her to graduate from Stony Brook University and fuel her passion for empowering young men and women. She later discovered the priceless opportunity to provide reliable in-home healthcare and opportunities for many people.
During her early career, Laborde discovered a need for in-home care services. When she worked overnight as a full-time bedside staff at Stony Brook University Hospital, her first-hand experience highlighted the stress families endured to find proper after-care for their loved ones once discharged from the hospital. Laborde created Ideal Home Care Services as a solution to set a better standard of healthcare for those who need it and will benefit.
Ideal Home Healthcare Services offer a wide variety of services to make life a little bit easier for everyone. The service provider offers home healthcare to over 1,000 seniors and others throughout Suffolk and Nassau Counties, allowing them to remain in the comfort of their homes for as long as possible. In addition, Laborde has created numerous job opportunities in her community by hiring people to care for those in need. But her work doesn’t stop there.
Since then, Laborde recognized the shortage of trained, certified personnel in the industry and was determined to bridge that gap. Her efforts to improve in-home care for patients continued with establishing the Ideal School of Allied Healthcare
in 2011. Licensed by the Department of Education, the school provides over 800 students with the skills, quality, relevant career training to meet the needs of what healthcare facilities and practices currently seek. Offered courses include how toEvery year her enrollment has increased, despite the pandemic, and she anticipates more growth this year.
The Ideal School of Allied Healthcare has become a meaningful opportunity for many enrolled international students immigrating from the Caribbean and Central America to improve their lives and earn more in their respected specialties. According to a press release provided to BLACK ENTERPRISE, about 50% of Ideal’s students come from low-income and blue-collar communities in Long Island and the five boroughs.
As a home healthcare small business owner, Laborde also teaches aspiring care aids and nurses the clinical skills deemed necessary to provide high-quality care and how to encourage positive and healthy relationships with clients and their families. Today, she employs about 215 people.
Laborde has received international recognition and holds several business leadership awards under her belt. She was recently listed among 2021 “Healthcare Heroes” by Schneps Media.