1. Employee Certification Sam Del Toro HOAG, California

2. The Issue Our department only had one certified technician - the supervisor. Our employees knew what they were doing, but they didn’t know the “why” behind their tasks. Additionally, we wanted our employees to be JCAHO-ready. Moving forward, we knew certification of employees was the way to go.

3. The Approach We surveyed the staff to see if education for certification was something our employees would want to participate in. It was important to convince the staff that this was the route we should take. An article in an IAHCSMM publication noted that the State of New Jersey requires their technicians to be certified, and the recognition of this new requirement triggered our facility to look toward the future. We realized that this requirement could become a standard in the coming years.

4. Group Effort

5. Implementation We determined how we would approach certification - we aimed to certify a certain number of employees per year with all leadership acquiring certification in the first year of implementation. After determining that we would have funding for 10-15 employees for the first year, we decided to implement a binding contract that states that the employee must commit to working for our department for one year. If the employee breaks this contract, the employee is responsible for reimbursement of the program. This ensured that our investment had a measured return. Thirteen employees were certified this year because of this program. We approached Executive Management with a proposal. After looking at our options, we hired a professional educator who provided class lectures and on-site testing. Employees who took the classes were committed to 4 hours a week for 26 weeks. Supervisors scheduled the employees accordingly to accommodate the educational hours. Weekly tests aimed to monitor the knowledge of lecture material were administered.

6. Key Information in Our Proposal to Management and Human Resources Objectives To offer Hoag Sterile Processing employees the opportunity to obtain IAHCSMM certification through an on-site training program. To create a yearly budget allowance for certification. Preliminary Plan –Any employee interested in participating in the certification program must be a full-time employee that has worked a minimum of one year in the department. –In addition, the employee must score a 3.75 or better on his or her most recent Annual Performance Evaluation. (a 3.75 on the Hoag scale is satisfactory) Program Choices and Costs IACHSMM recognizes Purdue University’s curriculum as the benchmark for preparation for the certification exam. There are different options we can offer to our employees. Below are recommendations. On-site Training was our first choice. On-site preparatory courses are available at an estimated cost of $1500.00 per employee ($22,500.00 total for fifteen employees). These classes would take place on campus: three hours per night, one night per week, for twenty-six weeks (six months). The cost of the exam is $105.00 per person ($1575.00 total for fifteen employees). The total amount of the budget request is $25,000. This includes preparatory and examination costs. Potential Labor Costs Most organizations do not pay employees to attend certification preparatory courses. Courses are paid for by the organizations and are taken by the employee in his or her spare time. Paid compensation for certification is commonly given as a yearly bonus for obtaining and maintaining certification. The option for a yearly bonus can be discussed at a later date.

7. Key Support We approached both Executive Leadership and Human Resources for support. Executive Leadership signed off on the funding after meeting with the employees and receiving positive feedback about the possibility of education and certification. Human Resources agreed to assist us in creating a career path (i.e. higher pay range and job title) after we told them that this program would help our turnover rate - we believe that employee retention is easier when you invest in your staff.

8. Results According to our quality assurance monitors, there was a significant decrease in errors in our trays after certification. Employees are comfortable in explaining processes and they fully understand the impact of their tasks. In providing this opportunity, employees were given goals and a chance to grow, which resulted in better morale.

9. Celebrating Success

10. Keys to Success What were the top three things that made this a success within your facility? 1. Enthusiastic staff participation 2. Support from Executive Management and Human Resources 3. Hiring a professional company to provide lectures and weekly testing.