In this course, you will learn the essential telehealth components necessary to conduct a clinical assessment, risk assessment, and utilize formal assessment instruments. You will also learn what hardware and software technological resources are needed to connect with clients via telehealth.

The goal of this course is to provide addictions, behavioral health counseling, marriage and family therapy, psychology, and social work professionals in health and human services with information on conducting clinical assessments via telehealth.

The goal of this course is to help nurses and speech-language pathologists (SLP) in early identification of dysphagia after a stroke. This course will review the incidence of dysphagia in stroke and the types of screenings and exams used for early detection and diagnosis. After reviewing swallow screens in detail, you will be able to understand how each member of the interprofessional team plays a role in the implementation of these assessments.

Symptoms such as fever, cough, and chills can alert you to the presence of an infectious or communicable disease in a child. When identified, these symptoms can alert you to potential concerns in your environment. Some symptoms are less obvious and may require careful inspection of the child to determine potential risk factors. Children are exposed to a variety of environments. Caregivers working with families must have the ability to identify health care concerns quickly to stop the spread of disease.

Treatment planning documentation is a critical link between the client, the services you provide, and the client’s progress. This course will reinforce what you already know about plans of care while offering you direction and structure for capturing the real therapeutic relationship on paper. You will learn how to better represent the care process by incorporating the core principles for clinical documentation. You will take a fresh look at ways to record your client’s strengths, goals, and treatment objectives, while also evaluating methods to accurately represent interventions, outcomes, and discharge plans. The goal of this course is to provide professionals in addictions, behavioral health counseling, case management, care management, marriage and family therapy, psychology, social work, and nurses in a health and human services setting with current strategies and recommendations for effective and person-centered treatment planning documentation.

Despite great strides in the reduction of medical errors, mistakes that result in patient harm remain too frequent in American healthcare institutions. In recent years, healthcare systems and institutions have sought to emulate the model of the high reliability organization or HRO. HROs are known for their safe operation and limited degree of failure despite engaging in potentially hazardous and highly complex activities. Researchers have identified several distinctive qualities specific to HROs that may be applied to healthcare contexts, with some caveats. Due to their unique and ubiquitous role within healthcare institutions, nurses have the potential to make significant contributions to this process.

The goal of this course is to equip nurses with knowledge of the characteristics and principles of high reliability organizations and the role of nurses in supporting high reliability.

Resuscitation of children and adults differs in a number of ways, including the appropriate time to activate the emergency response system, initiate rescue breathing, and use defibrillation. Children who collapse suddenly are likely experiencing ventricular fibrillation (VF) or pulseless ventricular tachycardia (PVT), which requires immediate CPR. The ability to use a defibrillator safely and effectively on a pediatric patient experiencing cardiac arrest is essential to providing quality care.

As a professional nurse, you are expected to be familiar with many aspects of care. You are not exempt from malpractice or negligence claims because you were following orders. You are responsible for assessing, planning, implementing, and evaluating appropriate nursing care. What you document can and does reflect the care provided and the outcomes of that care. Documentation that is factual, complete, timely, and detailed is required. In this course, you will learn about concepts and rules regarding documentation in the medical record. Legal aspects to be aware of while practicing will also be discussed. The goal of this course is to educate nursing professionals in post-acute care settings about the legal implications of documentation.

Conflict in the workplace is inevitable, because every person is different. However, handling it the right way leads to better relationships, an improved work environment, a stronger team, and personal goal achievement. This course presents techniques essential to handling conflict in the workplace.

This course explains the indications for hysterectomy, a commonly performed surgical procedure. You will learn the different approaches and the areas of special learning needs for women experiencing this procedure. Also covered is post-operative nursing care for women who undergo a hysterectomy, whether that care takes place in a surgery center, a hospital, or at home.

Controlled prescription medications, such as opioids, central nervous system depressants, and stimulants, are used to help manage health conditions but are also misused. Because of this, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and state agencies monitor use closely. Practitioners and pharmacies are required to monitor and report use of these substances and make ethical dispensing decisions. Due to many regulations regarding controlled substances, pharmacy technicians should be familiar with warning signs of misuse, signs of fraudulent prescriptions, and laws. They should avoid unnecessary judgment or bias and treat patients with compassion and respect.

Abdominal pain is the single most common ED complaint (up to 10% of visits) and is in the top four for emergency medicine litigation. Emergency providers must be proficient in diagnosing abdominal pain to provide excellent care to patients and reduce their risk of being named in litigation. This course will address abdominal pain diagnosis and treatment in the ED for the elderly, adults, children, and young women (of childbearing potential).

The goal of this course is to provide addictions, behavioral health counseling, marriage and family therapy, nursing, psychology, and social work professionals in health and human service settings with information about how substance use disorders can impact family systems and approaches to help the family system. 

Sepsis is the result of a dysregulated host response to severe infection that can result in systemic inflammation, immune system dysfunction, coagulopathies, multi-organ system failure, and death (Rhodes et al., 2017). The signs and symptoms of sepsis can vary in onset and presentation and depend on many individual patient factors. Early recognition and intervention is key to improving patient outcomes. Nurses are vital in this role as they are readily at the bedside and able to continually assess the patient and communicate changes in patient condition to providers. The goal of this course is to challenge the learner’s ability to identify key risk factors for sepsis and recognize signs and symptoms of early and progressive sepsis. It will also challenge the learner to accurately anticipate management strategies in the treatment of sepsis and sepsis-related complications.

Healthcare professionals often feel unprepared to ask about abuse or to counsel a pregnant woman who is being abused, although they are in a unique position to assess for IPV and to support women who experience it. As such, it is necessary for clinicians to skillfully screen for IPV and offer effective interventions when appropriate.

Social media and other forms of electronic communication allow people to instantly share pictures and messages with anyone, anywhere. But as the opportunities to share information online have increased, so have the challenges for keeping information private.

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, known as HIPAA, was designed to protect individuals’ rights and their personal healthcare information. HIPAA applies to both the storage and transfer of electronic protected health information, so these electronic communications must be handled carefully.

This course explains the concept of a professional therapeutic boundary and how it differs from a personal relationship. You will learn about the ethical role of the clinical practitioner in establishing appropriate roles and boundaries, the difference between boundary crossings and boundary violations, how to appropriately use social media and other technology, and how to recognize situations with high potential for harmful boundary violations. As you master these skills, you will become more effective in maintaining an appropriate relationship between you and your clients.

Improving hospital processes surrounding discharge and transitions of care can reduce adverse events and readmissions. Process improvements may also lead to better patient adherence to the treatment plan and their overall experience with care. The Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) survey is a national standardized survey required for hospitals participating in Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) programs. Survey results are linked to hospital reimbursement from CMS. This course provides updated information for clinicians about care coordination and transitions of care in relation to HCAHPS.

In this course, you will learn about pediatric anatomical and physiological differences, which will help you recognize normal variations throughout your assessment. Additionally, you will learn communication methods to help children feel more at ease during your assessment. Finally, you will understand essential warning signs that require immediate referral to additional medical professionals using the available resources and tools.

The goal of this course is to provide the clinician with up-to-date best practices for identifying and treating patients who have peripheral artery disease (PAD). The module covers symptoms, complications, risk factors, and modifications of PAD, along with the topics of diagnostic tests, assessment, and treatment strategies.

Substance use is a growing problem across populations. As a helping professional, you need a basic understanding of how substance use affects your clients. This information will help you to provide support and resources to help clients seek treatment and recovery. In this course, you will explore substance use disorders, how they develop, and their impact on individuals. The course also explains your role as a paraprofessional when working with individuals with substance use disorders. You will be provided an overview of evidence-based interventions and the types of substance use treatment programs available, when additional treatment may be necessary. Detailed examples will help you to apply this information in your own work. The goal of this course is to provide paraprofessionals and peer support specialists in health and human service settings with information on substance use disorders and evidence-based interventions.

This course will introduce you to the influenza pandemic response and its three stages of preparation, response, and recovery. You will learn about the basic elements of a pandemic influenza plan and the steps needed to implement this plan when responding to pandemic levels of influenza in the community.

Life-threatening dysrhythmias can occur in an inpatient setting, even more so in an intensive care unit. Changes to the electrical conduction system can cause sudden hemodynamic instability and cardiac death. Given this, critical care nurses must understand the different types of dysrhythmias, their causes, ECG characteristics, defibrillation, pacing, and nursing interventions.

Learn about the dangers of toxic stress for nurses and the benefits that mindfulness has to address those dangers. Practice several mindfulness techniques and discover hot to incorporate these practices into your busy day.

The prevalence of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is increasing in the U.S. and worldwide. However, if the condition is well managed, it can result in a healthy pregnancy. Maternal child health professionals must understand the condition, risk factors, and how to treat it.

As a healthcare worker, you are in regular contact with residents, visitors, and coworkers. When harassment or bullying occurs in the workplace, the impact on staff and visitors creates a troubled workplace. Facility operations are also disrupted with long-reaching effects. Workplace violence refers clearly to threats or actual use of physical force against a person in the workplace. In recent years, more healthcare workers have assumed a greater risk of exposure to workplace violence. In this course, you will learn how to spot, prevent, and respond to workplace violence. 

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) states that approximately 795,000 people within the U.S. experience a stroke annually, and among these individuals, over 75% experience a stroke for the first time (National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, 2021). Stroke, a national and international neurological problem, is the fifth leading cause of death in the U.S. and the second leading cause of death globally (World Health Organization [WHO], 2020; American Stroke Association [ASA], n.d.). Nurses need to be informed about the urgency of early treatment to be proactive in educating their communities. They also need to understand the resulting behavioral differences created in right- versus left-hemispheric strokes, and how a lack of knowledge can negatively impact immediate post-stroke care.

Proper functioning of the endocrine system is essential to checks and balances that maintain internal equilibrium. Antidiuretic hormone (ADH) plays a major role in controlling fluid balance. The release of ADH is initiated when the body recognizes a low circulating blood volume causing an increase in water absorption. Syndrome of inappropriate antidiuretic hormone (SIADH) is a condition in which the body has an increased response to ADH or an excessive amount of ADH is secreted. In this course, you will learn about SIADH and associated nursing care.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2021a), more than 795,000 people experience a stroke each year in the U.S. Stroke is the fifth leading cause of death in the U.S. and is a leading cause of serious, long-term disability. Over half of individuals 65 years old or older who survive a stroke have mobility deficits. Up to 40% of people who suffer a stroke continue to have moderate to severe impairments and require extra care (American Stroke Association, 2019). By understanding the cause of stroke and how to both treat and prevent it, you have the power to improve the lives of the people in your care. This course discusses how to identify when someone is having a stroke as well as treatment both during and after a stroke.

Hospitals and providers currently receive reimbursement by meeting criteria established by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Quality measures and length of stay data are measures that affect hospital reimbursement. Yet the patient’s experience of care also remains a key factor in hospital reimbursement models. CMS uses the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) survey to measure the patient’s experience, and nursing care is one part of the survey. Hospitals that perform well on the HCAHPS ratings are more likely to receive better reimbursement and bonuses. Nurses impact hospital ratings and reimbursement by providing the patient with a positive care experience.

Individuals with serious mental illness (SMI) die at a younger age as compared to individuals who do not have SMI (Schmutte et al., 20121). Data shows that this trend is getting worse; individuals with serious mental illness are dying even earlier and most often from preventable causes. As a professional working with adults with serious mental illness, you are well-poised to help your clients address the preventable causes of premature death through the utilization of recovery-oriented, evidence-based practices. In this course, you will learn about the core values underlying the Illness Management and Recovery (IMR) model, recent adaptations of the IMR model, how IMR can support you in addressing both physical and mental health symptoms, and how the approach’s teaching principles can support your clients with serious mental illness manage and recover from their illnesses. This course provides an overview of IMR practices. Through the use of interactive exercises and detailed vignettes, the course will give you the information and techniques you need to make IMR an effective part of your therapeutic toolbox. The content in this course is applicable to nurse practitioners, nurses, alcohol and drug counselors, marriage and family therapists, professional counselors, psychologists, and clinical social workers in human services settings. Inclusion of SAMHSA content does not constitute or imply endorsement or recommendation by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, or the U.S. Government.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is responsible for enforcing federal laws that make it illegal to discriminate against a job applicant or an employee because of the person's race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, or genetic information. The federal laws are very specific about the ways in which you, as an employer, are expected to select, promote, and accommodate your employees. You can be held liable for discrimination whether or not you intentionally discriminated against your employee, so it is imperative that you understand the federal laws prohibiting discrimination.

Pediatric immunizations are orchestrated specifically to protect young children from life-threatening diseases. These immunizations are often administered on a schedule. This course discusses the immunization schedule recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as well as related contraindications for pediatric immunizations.

This course is about harassment in the workplace, including sexual harassment and other types of workplace harassment. It looks at the basic skills needed to deal with situations involving harassment. This course will provide information that will help produce a healthy work environment that is free of harassment. It will also help you understand your role if you encounter harassment in the workplace. The content in this course is applicable to all employees.

Each year, substance use is linked to over 11 million deaths worldwide (Ritchie & Roser, 2019). Supporting individuals’ long-term recovery from substance use can help save lives. Recovery is a lifelong process that aims to keep an individual substance-free while improving their overall quality of life. Wellness strategies enhance recovery outcomes by focusing on optimal health across all dimensions of an individual’s life.

The biopsychosocial model takes a more holistic perspective, emphasizing biological, sociocultural, and psychological factors that relate to the risk of these disorders. This course will present an overview of this model’s primary assumptions, how it differs from other perspectives on substance-related and addictive behaviors, and how it can inform your approach to treatment. The goal of this course is to provide social workers, psychologists, alcohol and drug counselors, marriage and family therapists, professional counselors, and nurses in health and human services with information on how the biopsychosocial model is used in treatment for substance-related and addictive disorders.

Therapeutic communication between the nurse, patient, and family can be challenging in high-stress environments. Typically, critical care units have higher acuity levels and intense time constraints, thus hindering effective interactions. However, nurses who receive education in communication methods are more prepared to effectively communicate with their patients and families. Given this, critical care nurses must understand communication barriers, cultural influences, the importance of patient-centered communication, and strategies to increase therapeutic interactions. 

Floods and landslides can occur in many locations throughout the U.S. This course provides basic information about these hazards and the destruction they can cause. This course emphasizes the importance of being informed about flooding and landslide risks and hazards around you and various protective actions you could consider taking.

The goal of this course is to provide employees with a foundation for staying safe during flooding and landslides.

Failing to properly onboard employees results in poor performance and unnecessarily high turnover. In this course, we’ll cover best practices and lay out a plan for the first 6 months of a new employee’s orientation and performance expectations. We’ll also explore the importance of culture development as it relates to onboarding.

Advance directives are legal documents with instructions that apply if an adult is not able to make decisions about their own healthcare. They are meant to ensure that a person’s values related to dying, quality of life, and other relevant matters are honored.

The goal of this course is to inform all healthcare staff about the basics of advance directives.

Depression and suicide are among the top public health concerns facing older adult populations. Older adults encounter changes physically, cognitively, and psychosocially that often contribute to the onset of depression. Further, older adult populations have among the highest incident rates of suicide than any other age group, which makes appropriate diagnosis and treatment of depression in this population even more critical. This course will provide an overview of some physical, cognitive, and psychosocial factors that could be contributing to depression in an older adult, as well as important information on recognizing risk factors and warning signs of depression in this population. Additionally, information related to evidence-based treatment strategies for older adult populations will be discussed along with the importance of monitoring treatment adherence.

Critical thinking is the cognitive process of analyzing or evaluating information, and the “disposition to be deliberate about thinking that lead to action that is logical and appropriate” (Von Colln-Appling & Giuliano, 2017, p. 106). Critical thinking involves using a variety of cognitive skills and making an intellectual commitment to using the information gained to inform and direct behavior. This course covers the critical thinking process and describes its relevance and benefits, as well as practical ways to apply critical thinking for nurses and leaders in healthcare settings. While this course focuses on the application of critical thinking in the nursing profession, concepts and strategies presented in this course can be applied to all aspects of healthcare.

The federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) was implemented in 1996 and has evolved significantly. While HIPAA regulations have many varying components, the part of HIPAA most relevant to healthcare professionals, however, centers around the protection of an individual’s healthcare information. Because you play a key role in the production of healthcare information, you play a key role in its protection.

The goal of this course is to provide licensed professionals with an understanding of HIPAA, privacy, and security.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, minority groups will outnumber what is now considered mainstream culture by the middle of this century. Healthcare professionals need to heighten their awareness about the importance of role, culture, and tradition in preventing and treating women’s unique healthcare problems. When there is a lack of cultural sensitivity in communication, patients are less likely to be content with their healthcare experience, increasing the likelihood of miscommunication and possible cultural disparities. These factors can also cause non-compliance with treatment, worse health outcomes, and a higher incidence of adverse events.

The goal of this course is to equip healthcare professionals with knowledge of the impact of culture on women’s health beliefs and practices and their responses to current approaches to care.

Every year, hundreds of thousands of children in the United States are abused or neglected (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2018). It is imperative that medical professionals have a better understanding of what they can do to address this serious issue. In this course you will learn the definitions of child abuse and neglect, how to screen and assess risk factors that predispose children to maltreatment, and how to help children and families receive the care that they need.

Listening skills are an often-undeveloped component of effective communication. Leaders and managers with strong listening skills build more productive and engaged teams and increase their own effectiveness. In this course, you will learn the consequences of not listening effectively and how adapting the techniques of active listening will benefit you. You will develop a greater understanding of why and how managers and leaders must listen actively, not passively, to build stronger teams and increase their impact. You will learn the importance of establishing common ground and practicing empathy as you apply the techniques for becoming a better listener.

This course will offer a blend of ethical and legal information, clinical vignettes, and strategies that can later be applied in therapeutic settings. The content of this course includes information about informed consent, confidentiality, privacy, boundaries, mandatory reporting, and rules for sharing information. The course assumes the learner has a basic understanding of telehealth technologies and formats. To learn more, you can search the Relias library for additional courses related to telehealth.

The goal of this course is to provide addictions professionals, behavioral health counselors, marriage and family therapists, psychologists, social workers, and nurses in health and human services settings with strategies and information for competent and ethical telehealth practice.

 To care for a child with a tracheostomy tube, clinicians must understand the reason the child requires a tracheostomy, the functional status of the child’s upper airway, and the child’s medical condition. Children with tracheostomies routinely receive care in both home and healthcare settings. Patients with tracheostomies can experience complications and there is an increased risk of death associated with tracheostomy-related emergencies. The management of a child with a tracheostomy requires clinicians to be skilled in routine and emergency tracheostomy care.

The state of healthcare in the U.S. is poor when compared to other developed countries and the need to balance cost and quality has become apparent (The Commonwealth Fund, 2019). Utilization management helps ensure the most optimal care is being provided and waste of resources or services is reduced when possible. Clinicians in utilization management perform a variety of functions to help achieve a balance between quality and cost of care. Utilization reviews are one method to reveal areas where cost or quality can be improved and can serve as a basis for quality improvement initiatives in all healthcare settings. Thus, the importance of utilization management will continue to grow as regulatory bodies and healthcare professionals strive to improve the state of U.S. healthcare.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) affects thousands of people each year. IPV affects people of all social and economic backgrounds, ages, sex, sexual orientation, race, and ethnicity. Those who experience IPV often suffer adverse social and health outcomes that make early recognition, identification, and response a priority for professionals working in healthcare and health and human services. The goal of this educational program is to provide nurses, psychologists, social workers, alcohol and drug counselors, marriage and family therapists, and professional counselors in health and human services with information for recognizing, identifying, and responding to intimate partner violence.

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, commonly called HIPAA, protects the confidentiality and security of healthcare information. HIPAA creates and protects individual privacy rights for protected health information and governs the use and disclosure of that information.

The goal of this course is to provide all staff with an overview of the principles of HIPAA.

The content of this course is sourced from 45 CFR Parts 160,162, and 164 (2020) or HIPAA-related resources from the Health and Human Services (HHS) unless otherwise noted.

All healthcare organizations must follow a specific HIPAA rule, known as the Privacy Rule. This rule limits the use and disclosure of protected health information, known as PHI. The Privacy Rule also grants people the right to view and correct their medical records, receive copies, or request that copies are sent. The goal of this course is to provide all staff with knowledge of the HIPAA Privacy Rule.

You will learn about the costs, benefits, and goals of integrated care systems. As there are numerous challenges to integrating care, you will become aware of some of these key challenges, and familiar with particular characteristics of well-functioning integrated care systems. Finally, you will learn a variety of ways that behavioral healthcare professionals, including you, can function effectively in an integrated care environment.

A ‘culture of safety’ is an often-heard term in clinical settings. Most patients require complex care, with many interprofessional teams working together. Large patient volumes, an expectation for rapid delivery of care, the consumer’s ability to choose providers, and government reimbursements all drive acute care facilities to invest in preventing or reducing errors. Improving safety is beneficial to the patient primarily, with less risk of injury or death, but also to the facility and staff, improving retention and job satisfaction, with the added benefit of extensive cost-savings.

Within any healthcare organization, there are systems, policies, and procedures that can be improved or events that could have been prevented. A root cause analysis is a tool that helps healthcare organizations improve their systems by using a team process of discovery. When you understand how to use a root cause analysis, you can apply it to create better solutions, prevent adverse events, and create more effective and efficient systems. This course discusses what a root cause analysis is and how to use it.

Healthcare professionals witness the impact on patients’ quality of life and also see how hard it is for people to make changes in their health. Motivational interviewing is a patient-centered way to have a conversation that supports those struggling to make behavioral changes. The provider helps the patient explore personal motivators and identify their own goals. The approach is based on what matters to the patient. When each member of an interprofessional team practices from this point of view, the results can be positive for the patient and for the practitioners.

Emotional intelligence (EQ) is the ability to understand, express, and regulate your own emotions. It also refers to your awareness of what the people around you are feeling. One of the hallmark skills of EQ is the ability keep your emotional brain and your thinking brain working together, even in intense or stressful situations. Why is this important? What can it do for you?

The goal of this course is to teach all staff strategies to manage emotions.

You can better assist your patients who have asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) by building care teams in primary care. Learn how to assemble these teams and utilize certain disease-specific checkpoints for improved patient outcomes and health management.

This course is the fourth in a five-part series on the social determinants of health as defined by the Healthy People 2020 initiative. One of the pillars of the social determinants of health is health services. This course provides an in-depth and interactive analysis of how individuals' access to healthcare and primary care, along with their health literacy, affects their health and wellbeing. You will learn how to leverage this knowledge to improve your patients' health outcomes.

This module provides healthcare professionals with information about evidence-based medical therapy, best practice recommendations for the treatment of heart failure, and the role of interprofessional collaboration. It will increase your knowledge about heart failure — how to both recognize and manage it.

Communication is one of the most important elements of excellent care. This is especially true when decisions about medical treatments need to be made. Advance care planning is an ongoing process in which people explore and discuss their goals, values, and understanding of their health to guide future end-of-life treatment decisions. In this course, you will learn when and how to start conversations and how to use a framework called FIVE WISHES® that simplifies and personalizes the end-of-life conversation and helps to elicit valuable information for decision-making. The goal of this course is to provide healthcare staff with an overview of the benefits and components of effective advance care planning conversations.

Transfusions are a life-saving intervention, but transfusion errors, particularly errors involving ABO incompatibility, can be deadly. Three actions that have frequently been a contributing cause for ABO incompatibility errors are incorrect labeling of the blood sample for crossmatching, incorrect interpretation by personnel in the blood bank, and incorrect identification of the patient prior to initiation of a transfusion. Laboratory staff and nurses who are involved in the administration of blood products must strictly follow facility policies to ensure that they give the correct blood product to the correct patient. The goal of this course is to provide information about blood incompatibility errors and the evidence-based practices to prevent them.

This nursing leadership module educates nurses about trends in the healthcare industry, discusses skills nurses can learn to influence change, and challenges every nurse to become a strong leader and a supportive team member.

While strokes can be fatal, symptoms of stroke can be abetted if the patient is treated early enough. Educating patients on stroke prevention is vital for those who are at risk to avoid a medical emergency. In addition, it is important for healthcare providers (HCPs) to understand the etiological risk factors for stroke, as well as management techniques for patients who have already suffered a stroke.

The healthcare system is becoming increasingly complex. Therefore, care coordination and case management (CM) are integral to producing optimal member outcomes, decreasing the cost of care, and ensuring effective use of healthcare services. In this course, you will learn about the function, need, goals, and principles of care coordination and CM within the payor setting as well as common challenges that may be encountered. Finally, you will learn about the care coordination and CM process and the benefits to providers, members, and payer organizations.

The goal of this course is to equip nurses and CM professionals with education about the functions and benefits of the care coordination and CM process.

This course is about workplace slip, trip, and fall hazards. It alerts you to the serious consequences that can result even from a simple fall or a near fall and provides information about measures that can help you prevent these incidents and reduce potential injuries.

Grief is a normal and natural response to loss. It is not a problem to be solved, but rather a way of coping. This course discusses the basics of the grief process, the different types of grief, and ways of expressing grief. It also discusses tools to help you stay present and resilient as a healthcare professional supporting individuals and families.

Worldwide, postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) accounts for high rates of maternal morbidity and mortality. It is important to understand the definitions and causes of PPH, as well as the many risk factors associated with PPH and how to assess a woman’s risk. Early recognition is key to have good outcomes. Recognizing PPH, the stages of PPH, and how to measure blood loss is essential, since treatment is based upon the stages of hemorrhage. Additionally, it is important to understand nursing interventions, treatments for PPH (including medication, surgical procedures, and blood products), and teamwork and communication needs to improve perinatal outcomes.

Stress is part of everyone’s life. That’s not necessarily a bad thing. A certain level of stress is healthy because it motivates you to be productive. However, too much stress can do the opposite, leaving you feeling drained and irritable. You can’t escape stress, but you can learn to respond to it differently.

The goal of this course is to teach employees how to identify triggers and develop a personal stress management plan.

Despite being less prevalent than mood disorders, schizophrenia contributes substantially to global estimates of disability. Almost 3 million Americans live with the illness in a given year. Nevertheless, there is hope for people with schizophrenia spectrum disorders (i.e., schizophrenia, schizophreniform disorder, brief psychotic disorder, and related conditions) and their families. Research has led to more effective treatments and continues to develop newer types of medications; at the same time, researchers are unraveling the complex causes of these disorders. It is important to remember that even though there is not yet a cure, many people can manage the illness to lead independent, satisfying lives. The main goal of this course is to provide you with the information and current research you need to better understand how to collaborate in the treatment of schizophrenia spectrum disorders.

Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is an increasingly common diagnosis. Unfortunately, BPD continues to be misunderstood, stigmatized, and ineffectively treated. Part of the reason for this is the behaviors associated with the disorder fit into many diagnostic categories, making it sometimes difficult to distinguish BPD from other disorders. This course was created to give you the tools you need to accurately identify individuals with BPD and provide you with information about the treatment options available. You will learn about how BPD develops, the goals of treatment, and the challenges you might experience when working with this population. Finally, you will learn some of the most common issues that individuals with BPD experience while in treatment.
 
The goal of this course is to provide addictions, behavioral health counseling, marriage and family therapy, nursing, psychology, and social work professionals with information about theory, treatment, and common challenges when working with an individual that has BPD.
 
DSM™ and DSM-5-TR™ are registered trademarks of the American Psychiatric Association. The American Psychiatric Association is not affiliated with nor endorses this course.

Learn how to identify best practices for building care teams for patients with depression and anxiety, define key checkpoints and patient follow-ups, identify strategies for coordinating care with other providers, and evaluate the care provided by the team.

This introductory overview of cultural diversity will help enable you to interact with others of diverse cultures and effectively perform your job responsibilities.

This course will familiarize the learner with basic information concerning domestic and intimate partner violence (IPV). Information about IPV’s prevalence, characteristics, legal protections and risk factors will be presented. The cycle of abuse will be explained along with issues related intimate partner homicide. Screening and intervention protocols will be described along with community resources available to people experiencing domestic and intimate partner violence.

Universal Protocol is a Joint Commission strategy for preventing wrong-site surgeries, along with monitoring adherence by accredited facilities. The safe surgery checklist initiative, by the World Health Organization, was established to provide an outline of necessary tasks to complete in each perioperative phase of care. Along with these, there are many other risk-prevention strategies and tools to help keep surgical patients safe from harm.

The goal of this course is to equip nurses and CSTs with tools and other evidence-based practices for preventing wrong-site surgeries.

Earthquakes and tsunamis unleash powerful forces of nature. They cause catastrophic infrastructure and property damage and can result in tremendous loss of life. This course presents some basic facts about earthquakes and tsunamis, including considerations for preparedness and protective actions.

The goal of this course is to provide all staff with a basic overview of earthquakes and tsunamis.

Healthcare providers are constantly challenged to quickly adapt to organizational change and respond to turbulent environments with many interconnected and moving parts. Experts maintain that interprofessional healthcare teams can improve the quality of care, problem-solve more effectively, and improve outcomes. Building a team with diverse backgrounds and unique perspectives has been shown to have a positive impact on performance. Nurses can make a distinct impact by influencing the design of care delivery and improving the practice environment as part of strategic interprofessional planning . 

In healthcare, social media posts can influence the hiring process, violate patient privacy, and result in termination of employment. This module informs healthcare professionals of the risks of social networks, which break down the walls separating our personal and professional lives.

Approximately 30 million Americans have some form of hepatic failure. There are 11,886 people in the U.S. on the transplant list waiting for a new liver (Health Resources & Services Administration, 2021). Hepatic failure is rated as one of the leading causes of death, yet we know much less about this condition compared to other chronic diseases. Clinicians should be familiar with signs of liver failure and related conditions, risk factors for the disease, and treatment strategies.

The purpose of this course is to educate healthcare professionals on the causes, complications, and characteristics of hepatic failure to better manage and care for this patient population.

Most healthcare professionals would agree that the only constant in healthcare is change. Ongoing research, new evidence, increasingly complex patient care, and the need to satisfy patients and families have led to constant micro and macro adjustments in care delivery. This course will discuss how innovations can be recognized, developed, adopted, and disseminated amongst staff, as well as review areas where innovations are likely to change the provision of care in the current environment or in the near future. Lastly, we will discuss the patient’s role in innovation, and how patient and family-centered care will drive ongoing changes.

Bowel ischemia, infarctions, perforations, and obstructions are serious conditions that require prompt recognition and interventions to prevent severe complications and death. There are several underlying conditions that predispose patients to these conditions, for which education and risk modifications are crucial. 

The goal of this course is to equip nursing professionals in acute care with knowledge of risk factors, signs and symptoms, and management strategies for bowel ischemia, infarction, perforation, and obstruction.

End-of-life issues are difficult to face. The decisions to be made are challenging for everyone involved including the dying person, their loved ones, and the healthcare team. Individuals will have their own unique needs and concerns and will cope in their own way. But this can also be an opportunity for personal growth. These events will often provide people with the opportunity to self-reflect and gain insight into what is most valuable to them.

As someone who works in healthcare, you know that many of the people you see are likely to be taking one or more psychiatric medications. However, some healthcare professionals do not have a working knowledge of the types of medications used to treat various psychiatric disorders, nor are they aware of these medications’ potential side effects. In this course, you will learn about the major categories of medications used in the treatment of mental illness, including antipsychotics, antianxiety medications, antidepressants, and mood stabilizers. You will also learn about the different medications’ indications for use and some of their most common side effects. You will find out about some of the precautions that apply to specific populations taking psychiatric medications, such as older adults and psychiatric medication use during pregnancy and the postpartum period.

As the population of the U.S. soars in diversity, healthcare professionals must be prepared to care for childbearing families from many different cultures. All cultures and families should be given the same respect, be assured of the highest quality of care, have their religious, ethnic, and cultural values respected and integrated into their care, and have their physical and educational needs met in a way that honors their spiritual beliefs and individuality. Knowledge of the cultures one is serving and the influence they have on women’s perceptions of childbirth are important for achieving positive outcomes. Equally and perhaps more important is applying the principles of cultural humility to nursing care.

The goal of this continuing education course is to improve the ability of nurses and health educators in acute care settings to assess and meet the sociocultural needs of childbearing families of diverse cultural and social groups. 

Diabetes, a very common chronic condition, can be managed by prescribing proper diet, exercise, and pharmaceutical treatments. This course discusses building care teams for these patients, teaching team members key milestones and checkpoints, ensuring medication adherence, and coordinating care with other providers as it relates to diabetes.

To manage the threat posed by multi-drug-resistant organisms (MDROs), all healthcare workers and individuals must work together. Along with providing a comprehensive look at new and ever-changing MDROs, this course covers disease trends associated with MDROs, the national approach to combat MDROs, leading practices and clinical interventions, and the psychosocial effects of treatment. You will learn prevention measures and methods to control the spread of MDROs in our communities and throughout health care.

This course provides detailed information about the pathophysiology, disease trajectory, and unique symptoms experienced by patients with advanced neurological diseases. Learners will identify the clinical features of advanced Parkinson's disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and Huntington’s disease as well as best practices for symptom management. In addition, the key clinical indicators and symptoms that should serve as triggers to optimally transition a patient with advanced neurological diseases to palliative and hospice care are presented. The unique disease-related stressors for family caregivers are discussed. The goal of this course is to provide nurses in hospice with knowledge of caring for people with end-stage neurological diseases.

Healthcare professionals are often unprepared to respond to requests for physician-assisted death. With the increase in end-of-life discussions and more arguments for legalizing physician-assisted dying, healthcare professionals need to understand the reasons patients may initiate such a request. Healthcare professionals need to appropriately respond to these requests. This course discusses physician-assisted death and the related concepts. It also discusses ethical and legal concerns related to physician-assisted death. Without the knowledge and understanding of physician-assisted death, healthcare professionals may not respond appropriately to these requests from patients.

Being healthcare providers, we know the medical error statistics all too well and, at times, they occur too close to home. The purpose of this course is to help you, whether you work in a skilled nursing facility or an assisted living community, recognize error-prone situations and the factors that impact medical errors in an effort to prevent them.