Keep abreast, and earn CE credits too
May 1, 1998 3 minutes read
Keep abreast, and earn CE credits too
Variety of learning sources available
A reliable way to keep your staff informed of ever-changing accreditation standards is to gather everyone into a convenient meeting area once a month and tune into the Satellite Network videoconferences offered jointly by PRIMEDIA Workplace Learning in Carrollton, TX, and the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations in Oakbrook Terrace, IL. Everyone earns continuing education (CE) credits. If your facility has more than 100 beds, you can subscribe for $4,500 a year; if under 100, the cost is $3,500. Your hospital will have to pay $1,085 or $585 depending on size for a one-time installation of satellite equipment, and the production company supplies syllabi, workbooks, post-tests, and program flyers at no cost. An extra bonus: You can videotape the presentation for future use.
Joint Commission staff and surveyors present the latest information on new standards in a user-friendly way and explain updates on key accreditation issues, survey preparation, and new ORYX requirements. Hospitals call in their questions by phone. The sessions contain vignettes depicting how hospitals have solved various problems.
The following programs are offered each month:
· Preparing for survey: Establishing priorities, reducing costs, improving results (May 12). The broadcast will take a case-study approach, profiling hospitals that have recently and successfully completed their surveys.
· Innovative models of patient and family education (June 9). The video will profile creative ways hospitals are approaching the challenges of educating patients and their families.
· Meeting the requirements of ORYX: The next evolution in accreditation (July 14). Experts will present the latest information through practical examples.
· The restraint standards for 1998 (Aug. 11). The broadcast will illustrate how organizations can reduce the use of restraints to lowest possible levels.
· Improving patient care using management, clinical pathways, and practice guidelines: Examples of compliance (Sept. 22). Case-study organizations will be featured.
· Integrating leadership performance improvement and information management (Oct. 20). The broadcast will identify key issues and show how the functions will be surveyed in 1998 and 1999.
· The environment of care standards for 1998 and beyond (Nov. 10). Organizations with innovative approaches that meet requirements of the standards will be profiled.
Nursing staff earn 1.8 CNE hours per teleconference, and medical records staff and quality and risk management staff earn 1.5 CEU hours per teleconference.
Charlotte, NC-based MedEd offers off-site and on-site CE programs. The company provides about 30 seminars a month nationwide for an off-site fee of about $155 per person for two days. Credits vary per topic, but for example, a two-day program on "Emergency Nursing for the Millennium" earns 16.5 AACN contact hours; a one-day program on "ACLS: What to do when a code is called" earns 7.5 AACN contact hours and seven AANA CE hours; and a one-day program on "The new nurse manager" earns 7.5 AACN contact hours.
If your hospital is in a remote area, it may make economic sense to bring MedEd to you because you may not have easy access to scheduled off-site seminars. If you bring a speaker to your hospital, you can fine-tune the program to meet your facility's individual needs. If, for example, a trauma program is offered, you can ask the speaker to emphasize the pediatric aspect. You can also advertise the program to local hospitals and collect a fee. MedEd does not co-sponsor the program, so it doesn't claim any portion of fees. The hospital pays the speaker fee plus travel expenses. MedEd charges $1,700 per day (per speaker), and up to 50 can attend; above that, $10 per person is charged.
Atlanta-based American Health Consultants, publisher of Hospital Peer Review, is an accredited provider of CE in nursing by the American Nurses Credentialing Center's Commission on Accreditation. Nurses can register through a rapid on-line process, take electronic tests over the Internet, and receive feedback and contact hours immediately. Get more information by contacting us at [email protected], or by accessing http://www.ce-web.com on the Internet.
[Editor's note: For more information on the PRIMEDIA/ JCAHO satellite teleconferences, contact Sharon Lakes at (972) 417-4753. For more information on MedEd's CE programs, contact Pam Allen at (704) 333-1090.]
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