CPHFH Examination
The examination for the Certified Professional in Human Factors in Health Care (CPHFH) credential is offered throughout the year at PSI Assessment Centers located domestically in the United States and internationally. The examination is also available online via live remote proctor.
The examination is administered by appointment only.
Available dates will be indicated when you schedule your examination. Candidates are scheduled on a first-come, first-served basis.
Candidates will be given 2.5 hours to complete the examination.
CPHFH Content Areas
Candidates will be tested on the following human factors in health care domains:
- Assess and Analyze
- Design
- Improve and Monitor
CPHFH Examination Costs
- CPHFH Examination: US $549
- CPHFH Examination for international candidates: US $649
- CPHFH Practice Exam: US $99
How to Book a CPHFH Examination
The CPHFH examination is administered by appointment only at a PSI Assessment Center or online via live remote proctor.
- CPHFH Examination appointments will be available beginning in March 2025.
- Practice Exam is currently available (see below).
Live Remote Proctoring for CPHFH Exam
Live remote online proctoring option for the CPHFH exam is available allows CPHFH candidates to continue advancing their personal and professional goals without having to travel to a testing center. See the “How to Book an Examination” section for more information.
Please be advised: Using a work computer for the remote proctored exam, even one which passes the System Compatibility Check, is highly discouraged due to administrator firewalls and IT security systems which frequently prevent exam launch.
International Candidates
Candidates testing outside of the US may submit their applications online or by mail. International candidates will be notified of the exam scheduling process as follows:
- Online applicants will be notified by email as soon as they complete the application.
- A candidate who submits a paper application form will be notified by email within 10 business days of receipt of his or her application form.
Additional fees may apply for international candidates.
How to Prepare for the CPHFH Examination
Review the CPHFH Content Outline
Download a PDF of the CPHFH content outline
Take the CPHFH Practice Exam
Take a practice examination to help you evaluate your level of preparedness for the certification examination. Practice examinations are available for $99 and may be ordered online.
The CPHFH Practice Exam is an online practice exam that was developed to be parallel in content and difficulty to the actual Certified Professional in Human Factors in Health Care exam. The practice exam should be regarded as a diagnostic tool to assess strengths and weaknesses, rather than a study guide for the examination. A passing score on the practice exam does not in any way guarantee a passing score on the CPHFH certification examination, nor is it required to sit for the examination. The practice exam will be available online to you for a period of 60 days from the date the order is placed.
Review the CPHFH Resource List
- Berlin C, Bligård L, Babapour Chafi M, Eriksson S. Development of a stakeholder identification and analysis method for human factors integration in work system design interventions – Change Agent Infrastructure. Hum Ftrs & Erg Mfg Svc. 2022;32(1):151-170. doi:10.1002/hfm.20910
- Carayon P, Hoonakker P. Human factors and usability for health information technology: old and new challenges. Yearb Med Inform. 2019;28(01):071-077. doi:10.1055/s-0039-1677907
- Carayon P, Hundt AS, Karsh B, et al. Work system design for patient safety: the SEIPS model. Qual Saf Health Care. 2006;15(Suppl 1):i50-i58. doi:10.1136/qshc.2005.015842
- Carayon P, Wooldridge A, Hoonakker P, Hundt AS, Kelly MM. SEIPS 3.0: Human-centered design of the patient journey for patient safety. Applied Ergonomics. 2020;84:103033. doi:10.1016/j.apergo.2019.10303
- Dabbs ADV, Myers BA, Mc Curry KR, et al. User-centered design and interactive health technologies for patients. CIN: Computers, Informatics, Nursing. 2009;27(3):175-183. doi:10.1097/NCN.0b013e31819f7c7c
- Etchells E, Juurlink D, Levinson W. Medication errors: the human factor. Canadian Medical Association Journal. 2008;178(1):63-64. doi:10.1503/cmaj.071658
- Fung EY, Leung B, Hamilton D, Hope J. Do automated dispensing machines improve patient safety? CJHP. 2009;62(6). doi:10.4212/cjhp.v62i6.852
- Holden RJ, Carayon P, Gurses AP, et al. SEIPS 2.0: a human factors framework for studying and improving the work of healthcare professionals and patients. Ergonomics. 2013;56(11):1669-1686. doi:10.1080/00140139.2013.838643
- Institute of Medicine (US) Committee on Quality of Health Care in America. Crossing the Quality Chasm: A New Health System for the 21st Century. National Academies Press (US); 2001. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK222274/
- Kellogg KM, Hettinger Z, Shah M, et al. Our current approach to root cause analysis: is it contributing to our failure to improve patient safety? BMJ Qual Saf. 2017;26(5):381-387. doi:10.1136/bmjqs-2016-005991
- Koppel R, Wetterneck T, Telles JL, Karsh BT. Workarounds to barcode medication administration systems: their occurrences, causes, and threats to patient safety. Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association. 2008;15(4):408-423. doi:10.1197/jamia.M2616
- Kushniruk AW, Borycki EM. Human factors in healthcare IT: Management considerations and trends. Healthc Manage Forum. 2023;36(2):72-78. doi:10.1177/08404704221139219
- Meadows S, Baker K, Butler J. The incident decision tree. Clinical Risk. 2005;11(2):66-68. doi:10.1258/1356262053429732
- Meadows S, Baker K, Butler J. The Incident Decision Tree: Guidelines for Action Following Patient Safety Incidents . https://www.ahrq.gov/downloads/pub/advances/vol4/meadows.pdf
- Miller KE, Mims M, Paull DE, et al. Wrong-side thoracentesis: lessons learned from root cause analysis. JAMA Surg. 2014;149(8):774. doi:10.1001/jamasurg.2014.146
- Parast L, Doyle B, Damberg CL, et al. Challenges in assessing the process–outcome link in practice. J GEN INTERN MED. 2015;30(3):359-364. doi:10.1007/s11606-014-3150-0
- Pruitt ZM, Howe JL, Bocknek LS, et al. Informing visual display design of electronic health records: a human factors cross-industry perspective. PATIENT SAFETY. 2023;5(2). doi:10.33940/001c.77769
- Reason J. Human error: models and management. BMJ. 2000;320(7237):768-770. doi:10.1136/bmj.320.7237.768
- Russ AL, Fairbanks RJ, Karsh BT, Militello LG, Saleem JJ, Wears RL. The science of human factors: separating fact from fiction. BMJ Qual Saf. 2013;22(10):802-808. doi:10.1136/bmjqs-2012-001450
- Sujan M, Lounsbury O, Pickup L, Kaya GK, Earl L, McCulloch P. What kinds of insights do Safety-I and Safety-II approaches provide? A critical reflection on the use of SHERPA and FRAM in healthcare. Safety Science. 2024;173:106450. doi:10.1016/j.ssci.2024.106450
- Tucker AL, Zheng S, Gardner JW, Bohn RE. When do workarounds help or hurt patient outcomes? The moderating role of operational failures. J of Ops Management. 2020;66(1-2):67-90. doi:10.1002/joom.1015
- Vargas C, Whelan J, Brimblecombe J, Allender S. Co-creation, co-design, co-production for public health – a perspective on definition and distinctions. Public Health Res Pract. 2022;32(2). doi:10.17061/phrp3222211
- Vogelsmeier A, Scott-Cawiezell J, Miller B, Griffith S. Influencing leadership perceptions of patient safety through just culture training. Journal of Nursing Care Quality. 2010;25(4):288-294. doi:10.1097/NCQ.0b013e3181d8e0f2
- Wright M. Exploring Normalization of Deviance and Examining Factors That Predict Culture of Safety in the Operating Room. University of Louisville; 2019. doi:10.18297/etd/3339
- Xie A, Carayon P. A systematic review of human factors and ergonomics (Hfe)-based healthcare system redesign for quality of care and patient safety. Ergonomics. 2015;58(1):33-49. doi:10.1080/00140139.2014.959070
