Training young assistants: an analysis of the evolution of graduates in Consulting Group Ecuador

Abstract

The study, carried out at Consulting Group Ecuador, Santo Domingo headquarters, aimed to analyze the number of graduates and dropout trends in health assistant degrees between 2018 and 2023. With a quantitative approach and a descriptive crosssectional design, 6,154 students from five auxiliary training courses and three health specialties, such as Prehospital Care (APH) and Nursing, were studied. For data collection, a registration form was used, where variables such as year, degree, number of enrollees, dropouts, causes of dropout and graduates were included. The data were processed in Excel and analyzed in SPSS using ANOVA to evaluate significant differences in graduation and dropout. The results showed a sustained growth of graduates, especially in Nursing and APH. The initial dropout rate was higher in the first modules, progressively decreasing. The main causes of dropout were a lack of vocation in the first modules, academic difficulties and economic problems, accentuated during the COVID-19 pandemic. It was concluded that, although the training capacity increased, reflected in a high number of graduates and a dropout rate of less than 22%, it is recommended to reinforce early vocational guidance interventions; contributing to reducing dropout and consolidating the achievements observed in the training of health assistants.