IHI Open School
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IHI Open School Single-Course Purchases
Flexibility for Your Learning Journey
Whether you're a user of the student IHI Open School, an experienced Full Access Subscriber looking for new opportunities to study higher level concepts, or trying out the IHI Open School for the first time, our single-course purchases are designed to augment your learning journey and provide the flexibility to learn your way.
Earn Continuing Education Credits
IHI Open School single-course purchases are offered with the option to earn Continuing Education credits in medicine, nursing, social work, and pharmacy. Each course can be purchased with earnable credits for $20 or without credits for $10.
Review each course's description for full credit information and click here to learn more about Continuing Education credits.
How to Purchase
1. Click the expand icon (+) on the course you would like to purchase.
2. Choose the version of the course with Continuing Education credits or without Continuing Education credits and click on the appropriate link.
3. Complete the registration and payment process. An order confirmation email and welcome email will be sent to you. Make sure to monitor your spam folder for the emails.
4. Follow the instructions on your welcome email to access the course in the IHI Education Platform.
Important note: if you are a paid Full Access Subscriber or Patient Safety Catalog Subscriber, some of these courses may already be included in your subscription.
For help, go to: ihi.org/help
Available Single-Course Purchases
Purchase Options
- $20 USD: Decarbonizing Care 101: Climate and Health (CE Credits)
- $10 USD: Decarbonizing Care 101: Climate and Health (No CE Credits)
Overview
Climate change is the greatest global threat to human health and health care is contributing to this crisis. Although health care provides necessary clinical care delivery for individuals affected by climate change, the sector also contributes to the problem causing as much as 4.6% of the total greenhouse gas emissions worldwide. In this course, you will gain a foundational education on the relationship between climate change, health care, and human health, which will enable you to further engage with decarbonizing clinical care delivery, while ensuring that safe and quality patient care is provided.
In Lesson 1, you’ll learn the relationship between climate change and human health and review the critical drivers of climate change, the health risks and vulnerabilities it poses, and the concepts of climate mitigation and adaptation.
In Lesson 2, you’ll learn about the healthcare sector’s contribution to climate change, the six key domains of action to decarbonize hospitals, and suggested measures and interventions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions along these domains.
In Lesson 3, you’ll learn the structural enablers needed to bolster health care systems efforts to accelerate climate action and explore how the role of institutional policies, leadership, and healthcare professionals in mobilizing decarbonization across the health care sector.
Lessons
- Lesson 1: Understanding Climate Change and Human Health
- Lesson 2: Health Care Sector and Climate Change: A Paradox
- Lesson 3: Being the Change: How Health Care Can Combat the Climate Crisis
Course Objectives
After completing this course, you’ll be able to:
- Summarize the relationship between climate and health
- Describe the distribution of greenhouse gas emissions in health care
- Identify the six domains of decarbonization action
- Explain the structural enablers and systematic shifts needed in clinical practice to support decarbonizing care delivery
Continuing Education
In support of improving patient care, the Institute for Healthcare Improvement is jointly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), to provide continuing education for the healthcare team.
This program is approved to provide 1.75 credits for physicians, nurses, and Certified Professional in Patient Safety (CPPS) recertification.
The Institute for Healthcare Improvement designates this internet enduring activity for a maximum of 1.75 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity. This activity may also be applicable for other professions that accept AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™.
As a result of this program, attendees will be able to:
- Describe the relationship between the climate crisis and human health, and the contribution of the health care sector to a changing climate.
- Assess the environmental impacts of anesthetic gases, inhalers, and medical supplies and devices.
- Describe measures and actions to track and reduce emissions stemming from clinical practice.
- Use QI tools and methods to implement environmental sustainability projects at your own institutions.
Planning Committee
- Bhargavi Chekuri, MD, Co-director, Diploma in Climate Medicine and Co-director, Climate & Health Science Policy Fellowship, University of Colorado School of Medicine
- Katharine Weber, MD, Attending Physician, Rochester Regional Health
- Johannah Bjorgaard, DNPc, RN, PHN, CSSBB, Director, Energy Audit, University of Minnesota, M Health Fairview
- Bhargavi Sampath, MPH, Director, Innovation, IHI
- Kate Feske-Kirby, MA, Research Associate, IHI
- Kara Andrew, Co-Lead, Education Content Design and Development, IHI
- Melissa Smart, Instructional Designer, IHI
Disclosure: None of the planners, presenters, or staff for this educational activity have relevant financial relationship(s) to disclose with ineligible companies whose primary business is producing, marketing, selling, re-selling, or distributing healthcare products used by or on patients.
Purchase Options
- $20 USD: Patient Safety 201: Root Cause Analyses and Actions (CE Credits)
- $10 USD: Patient Safety 201: Root Cause Analyses and Actions (No CE Credits)
Overview
This course introduces learners to a systematic response to error called Root Cause Analyses and Actions (RCA2). The goal of RCA2 is to learn from adverse events and near misses, and to take action to prevent them from happening in the future. By the end of this course, you’ll have a step-by-step approach for investigating an event and improving after something goes wrong.
Lesson 1 introduces RCA2 and describes the key elements of the process, including the concept of risk-based prioritization.
Lesson 2 describes how to conduct RCA2, focusing on actions that should occur within 45 days of an adverse event or near-miss incident. You’ll learn whom to include on an RCA2 team, how to conduct interviews and draw a high-level flowchart to understand what happened, and how to use what you learn to develop causal statements.
Lesson 3 takes a close look at the true purpose of RCA2: action. You will learn how to compose recommended actions so that people with appropriate authority in the system can use the findings to improve.
RCA2 is a trademark of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement. IHI does not endorse any software or training for the RCA2 process that is not directly provided by IHI. Acknowledgment: This course content is based on the report RCA2 : Improving Root Cause Analyses and Actions to Prevent Harm. IHI gratefully acknowledges the members of the expert panel who contributed to the report.
Estimated Time of Completion: 1 hour 15 minutes
Lessons
- Lesson 1: Preparing for Root Cause Analyses and Actions
- Lesson 2: Conducting Root Cause Analyses
- Lesson 3: Actions to Build Safer Systems
Course Objectives
After completing this course, you will be able to:
- Explain how adverse events and near misses can be used as learning opportunities.
- Determine which events are appropriate for Root Cause Analyses and Actions (RCA Squared).
- Describe a timeline of activities for the RCA Squared review period.
- Describe activities that should take place during the action period of RCA Squared.
Continuing Education
The Institute for Healthcare Improvement designates this internet enduring activity for a maximum of 1.25 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
This activity is approved to award 1.25 credit(s) toward Certified Professional in Patient Safety (CPPS) recertification.
This program has been approved by the National Association for Healthcare Quality for a maximum of 1.25 CPHQ continuing education credits for this event.
Successful completion of this CME activity, which includes participation in the evaluation component, enables the participant to earn up to:
- 1.25 Medical Knowledge MOC point(s) in the American Board of Internal Medicine's (ABIM) Maintenance of Certification (MOC) program
- 1.25 MOC point(s) in the American Board of Pediatrics' (ABP) Maintenance of Certification (MOC) program
- 1.25 point(s) in the CME component of the American Board of Anesthesiology's redesigned Maintenance of Certification in AnesthesiologyTM (MOCA®) program, known as MOCA 2.0®. (Please consult the ABA website, www.theABA.org, for a list of all MOCA 2.0 requirements.)
- 1.25 point(s) in the American Board of Ophthalmology's Maintenance of Certification program. It is the CME activity provider's responsibility to submit learner completion information to ACCME for the purpose of granting MOC credit.
Successful completion of this CME activity, which includes participation in the evaluation component, enables the learner to satisfy the Lifelong Learning requirements for the American Board of Ophthalmology's Maintenance of Certification program.
Successful completion of this activity, which includes participation in the evaluation component, offers Lifelong Learning (MOC Part 2 CME) point(s) for the following boards:
- American Board of Anesthesiology (ABA)*
- American Board of Allergy & Immunology (ABAI)
- American Board of Colon & Rectal Surgery (ABCRS)
- American Board of Pathology (ABPath)
- American Board of Psychiatry & Neurology (ABPN)*
- American Board of Plastic Surgery (ABPS)*
- American Board of Nuclear Medicine (ABNM)
- American Board of Thoracic Surgery (ABTS)
- American Board of Urology (ABU)
*Approved as a Foundational Patient Safety Activity for ABA, ABPN, and ABP
Successful completion of this activity, which includes participation in the evaluation component, offers Self-Assessment (MOC Part 2 SA) point(s) for the following boards:
- American Board of Family Medicine (ABFM) (15pts)**
- American Board of Pediatrics (ABPed) (20pts)**
- American Board of Ophthalmology (ABOP)
- American Board of Orthopedic Surgery (ABOS)
- American Board of Radiology (ABR)
- American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (ABPMR)
**ABPed and ABFM diplomates are required to complete all the selected courses within an activity to collect MOC activity points.
It is the CME activity provider's responsibility to submit learner completion information to ACCME for the purpose of granting MOC credit.
As a Jointly Accredited Organization, the Institute for Healthcare Improvement is approved to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Organizations, not individual courses, are approved under this program. Regulatory boards are the final authority on courses accepted for continuing education credit. Social workers completing this course receive 1.25 general continuing education credits.
Purchase Options
- $20 USD: Patient Safety 202: Achieving Total Systems Safety (CE Credits)
- $10 USD: Patient Safety 202: Achieving Total Systems Safety (No CE Credits)
Overview
This course will review eight key recommendations for achieving safety on a system-wide level, as proposed by the IHI report Free from Harm: Accelerating Patient Safety Improvement Fifteen Years after To Err Is Human.
Lesson 1 will briefly review the complete set of recommendations, with a focus on actions for leaders of health systems.
Lesson 2 will provide a closer review of critical recommendations for supporting the health care workforce. Failure to support the health care workforce is associated with a variety of adverse consequences that ripple across the health care system, making it less safe for patients, families, and providers.
Lesson 3 focuses on how engaging patients and families as respected partners can improve the safety of care.
Acknowledgment: This course content is based on the report Free from Harm: Accelerating Patient Safety Improvement Fifteen Years after To Err Is Human. IHI gratefully acknowledges the members of the expert panel who contributed to the report.
Estimated Time of Completion: 1 hour 15 minutes
Lessons
- Lesson 1: Eight Recommendations for Total Systems Safety
- Lesson 2: Supporting the Health Care Workforce
- Lesson 3: Partnering with Patients and Families
Course Objectives
After completing this course, you will be able to:
- List eight recommendations for leaders to accelerate patient safety and prevent harm.
- Explain three key recommendations for promoting safety among the health care workforce.
- Identify five strategies that empower patient and family engagement in patient safety.
Continuing Education
In support of improving patient care, the Institute for Healthcare Improvement is jointly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) to provide continuing education for the health care team.
The Institute for Healthcare Improvement designates this internet enduring activity for a maximum of 1.25 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
This activity is approved to award 1.25 credit(s) toward Certified Professional in Patient Safety (CPPS) recertification.
This program has been approved by the National Association for Healthcare Quality for a maximum of 1.25 CPHQ continuing education credits for this event.
Successful completion of this CME activity, which includes participation in the evaluation component, enables the participant to earn up to:
- 1.25 Medical Knowledge MOC point(s) in the American Board of Internal Medicine's (ABIM) Maintenance of Certification (MOC) program
- 1.25 MOC point(s) in the American Board of Pediatrics' (ABP) Maintenance of Certification (MOC) program
- 1.25 point(s) in the CME component of the American Board of Anesthesiology's redesigned Maintenance of Certification in AnesthesiologyTM (MOCA®) program, known as MOCA 2.0®. (Please consult the ABA website, www.theABA.org, for a list of all MOCA 2.0 requirements.)
- 1.25 point(s) in the American Board of Ophthalmology's Maintenance of Certification program. It is the CME activity provider's responsibility to submit learner completion information to ACCME for the purpose of granting MOC credit.
Successful completion of this CME activity, which includes participation in the evaluation component, enables the learner to satisfy the Lifelong Learning requirements for the American Board of Ophthalmology's Maintenance of Certification program.
Successful completion of this activity, which includes participation in the evaluation component, offers Lifelong Learning (MOC Part 2 CME) point(s) for the following boards:
- American Board of Anesthesiology (ABA)*
- American Board of Allergy & Immunology (ABAI)
- American Board of Colon & Rectal Surgery (ABCRS)
- American Board of Pathology (ABPath)
- American Board of Psychiatry & Neurology (ABPN)*
- American Board of Plastic Surgery (ABPS)*
- American Board of Nuclear Medicine (ABNM)
- American Board of Thoracic Surgery (ABTS)
- American Board of Urology (ABU)
*Approved as a Foundational Patient Safety Activity for ABA, ABPN, and ABPS
Successful completion of this activity, which includes participation in the evaluation component, offers Self-Assessment (MOC Part 2 SA) point(s) for the following boards:
- American Board of Family Medicine (ABFM) (15pts)**
- American Board of Pediatrics (ABPed) (20pts)**
- American Board of Ophthalmology (ABOP)
- American Board of Orthopedic Surgery (ABOS)
- American Board of Radiology (ABR)
- American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (ABPMR)
**ABPed and ABFM diplomates are required to complete all the selected courses within an activity to collect MOC activity points.
It is the CME activity provider's responsibility to submit learner completion information to ACCME for the purpose of granting MOC credit.
As a Jointly Accredited Organization, the Institute for Healthcare Improvement is approved to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Organizations, not individual courses, are approved under this program. Regulatory boards are the final authority on courses accepted for continuing education credit. Social workers completing this course receive 1.25 general continuing education credits.
Purchase Options
- $20 USD: Triple Aim 102: Improving Health Equity (CE Credits)
- $10 USD: Triple Aim 102: Improving Health Equity (No CE Credits)
Overview
This three-lesson course will explore health disparities — what they are, why they occur, and how you can help reduce them in your local setting. After discussing the current (and alarming) picture, we’ll learn about some of the promising work that is reducing disparities in health and health care around the world. Then, we’ll suggest how you can start improving health equity in your health system and community.
Lesson 1 uses statistics and videos of experts to highlight disparities in health care and health — and to consider what’s causing these gaps to widen among populations.
In Lesson 2, it’s time to examine work that is reducing inequities by better serving people with poor health and inadequate health care. We’ll introduce IHI’s Framework for Health Care Organizations to Achieve Health Equity and give examples of organizations pursuing equity by taking a tour of several successful initiatives. Finally, it’s your turn. You have the opportunity to make a difference in the lives of patients and their communities.
In Lesson 3, we offer several strategies for getting started.
Estimated Time of Completion: 2 hours
Lessons
- Lesson 1: Understanding Health Disparities
- Lesson 2: How Health Care Can Advance Health Equity
- Lesson 3: Your Role in Improving Health Equity
Course Objectives
After completing this course, you will be able to:
- Recognize at least two causes of health disparities in the US and around the world.
- Describe at least three initiatives to reduce disparities in health and health care.
- Identify several ways you can help reduce health disparities.
Continuing Education
Successful completion of this CME activity, which includes participation in the evaluation component, enables the participant to earn up to 1.5 Medical Knowledge MOC points in the American Board of Internal Medicine's (ABIM) Maintenance of Certification (MOC) program. It is the CME activity provider's responsibility to submit participant completion information to ACCME for the purpose of granting ABIM MOC credit.
In support of improving patient care, the Institute for Healthcare Improvement is jointly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) to provide continuing education for the health care team.
The Institute for Healthcare Improvement designates this internet enduring activity for a maximum of 1.5 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
The Institute for Healthcare Improvement designates this internet enduring activity for a maximum of 1.5 credits for nurses and pharmacists. This activity is approved to award 1.5 credits toward Certified Professional in Patient Safety (CPPS) recertification.
This program has been approved by the National Association for Healthcare Quality for a maximum of 1.5 CPHQ continuing education credits for this event.
As a Jointly Accredited Organization, the Institute for Healthcare Improvement is approved to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Organizations, not individual courses, are approved under this program. Regulatory boards are the final authority on courses accepted for continuing education credit. Social workers completing this course receive 1.5 general continuing education credits.
Purchase Options
- $20 USD: Quality Improvement 201: Planning for Spread (CE Credits)
- $10 USD: Quality Improvement 201: Planning for Spread (No CE Credits)
Overview
Previous courses in the Quality Improvement catalog focused on testing and implementing a change in one location. This advanced course is about the next logical step: spreading the change.
In Lesson 1, you’ll learn how new ideas typically spread through a population, according to the work of psychologist Kurt Lewin and sociologist Everett Rogers. With their research in mind, you’ll learn what you can do to help motivate the more change-resistant individuals in your population to embrace a new idea, to allow your innovation to spread as far as possible.
In Lesson 2, you’ll learn about how to help a new idea spread across a population, both by motivating the people within the population to adopt the change and by developing new ideas that are inherently more likely to spread. Based on the five traits of innovations that spread, we’ll provide you with a tool, the New Idea Scorecard, to assess your idea for a change. Finally, we’ll provide you with a roadmap for spreading a change, which we call IHI’s Framework for Spread.
In Lesson 3, you’ll follow a detailed case study about how a hospital network in Central Texas used the concepts from the first two lessons to spread a major improvement initiative — widely improving care across a vast system.
Estimated Time of Completion: 1 hour 15 minutes
Lessons
- Lesson 1: How Change Spreads
- Lesson 2: Tactics for Spreading Change
- Lesson 3: Case Study in Spreading Innovations: Transforming Care at the Bedside
Course Objectives
After completing this course, you will be able to:
- Describe how change spreads according to Kurt Lewin and Everett Rogers.
- Assess the likelihood that a new idea will spread.
- Apply IHI’s Framework for Spread to spread an innovation across an organization.
Continuing Education
The Institute for Healthcare Improvement designates this internet enduring activity for a maximum of 1.25 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
This activity is approved to award 1.25 credit(s) toward Certified Professional in Patient Safety (CPPS) recertification.
This program has been approved by the National Association for Healthcare Quality for a maximum of 1.25 CPHQ continuing education credits for this event.
Successful completion of this CME activity, which includes participation in the evaluation component, enables the participant to earn up to:
- 1.25 Medical Knowledge MOC point(s) in the American Board of Internal Medicine's (ABIM) Maintenance of Certification (MOC) program
- 1.25 MOC point(s) in the American Board of Pediatrics' (ABP) Maintenance of Certification (MOC) program
- 1.25 point(s) in the CME component of the American Board of Anesthesiology's redesigned Maintenance of Certification in AnesthesiologyTM (MOCA®) program, known as MOCA 2.0®. (Please consult the ABA website, www.theABA.org, for a list of all MOCA 2.0 requirements.)
- 1.25 point(s) in the American Board of Ophthalmology's Maintenance of Certification program. It is the CME activity provider's responsibility to submit learner completion information to ACCME for the purpose of granting MOC credit.
Successful completion of this CME activity, which includes participation in the evaluation component, enables the learner to satisfy the Lifelong Learning requirements for the American Board of Ophthalmology's Maintenance of Certification program.
Successful completion of this activity, which includes participation in the evaluation component, offers Lifelong Learning (MOC Part 2 CME) point(s) for the following boards:
- American Board of Anesthesiology (ABA)
- American Board of Allergy & Immunology (ABAI)
- American Board of Colon & Rectal Surgery (ABCRS)
- American Board of Pathology (ABPath)
- American Board of Psychiatry & Neurology (ABPN)
- American Board of Plastic Surgery (ABPS)
- American Board of Nuclear Medicine (ABNM)
- American Board of Thoracic Surgery (ABTS)
- American Board of Urology (ABU)
Successful completion of this activity, which includes participation in the evaluation component, offers Self-Assessment (MOC Part 2 SA) point(s) for the following boards:
- American Board of Family Medicine (ABFM) (15pts)*
- American Board of Pediatrics (ABPed) (20pts)*
- American Board of Ophthalmology (ABOP)
- American Board of Orthopedic Surgery (ABOS)
- American Board of Radiology (ABR)
- American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (ABPMR)
*ABPed and ABFM diplomates are required to complete all the selected courses within an activity to collect MOC activity points.
It is the CME activity provider's responsibility to submit learner completion information to ACCME for the purpose of granting MOC credit.
As a Jointly Accredited Organization, the Institute for Healthcare Improvement is approved to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Organizations, not individual courses, are approved under this program. Regulatory boards are the final authority on courses accepted for continuing education credit. Social workers completing this course receive 1.25 general continuing education credits.
Purchase Options
- $20 USD: Person- and Family-Centered Care 102: Key Dimensions of Patient- and Family-Centered Care (CE Credits)
- $10 USD: Person- and Family-Centered Care 102: Key Dimensions of Patient- and Family-Centered Care (No CE Credits)
Overview
What are the key attributes of patient- and family-centered care, and how can you bring them into health care? In this course, you’ll learn the four core concepts of patient-centered care as described by the Institute for Patient- and Family-Centered Care and how to apply them. You’ll also see how your health care system can involve patients in redesigning care.
Estimated Time of Completion: 1 hour
Course Objectives
After completing this course, you will be able to:
- Describe four dimensions of patient- and family-centered care.
- Identify practices of health care providers that can promote patient- and family-centered care.
- Discuss how health care systems can collaborate with patients and families on an institution-wide level.
Continuing Education
Successful completion of this CME activity, which includes participation in the evaluation component, enables the participant to earn up to 1 Medical Knowledge MOC points in the American Board of Internal Medicine's (ABIM) Maintenance of Certification (MOC) program. It is the CME activity provider's responsibility to submit participant completion information to ACCME for the purpose of granting ABIM MOC credit.
In support of improving patient care, the Institute for Healthcare Improvement is jointly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) to provide continuing education for the health care team.
The Institute for Healthcare Improvement designates this internet enduring activity for a maximum of 1 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
The Institute for Healthcare Improvement designates this internet enduring activity for a maximum of 1 credits for nurses and pharmacists. This activity is approved to award 1 credits toward Certified Professional in Patient Safety (CPPS) recertification.
This program has been approved by the National Association for Healthcare Quality for a maximum of 1 CPHQ continuing education credits for this event.
As a Jointly Accredited Organization, the Institute for Healthcare Improvement is approved to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Organizations, not individual courses, are approved under this program. Regulatory boards are the final authority on courses accepted for continuing education credit. Social workers completing this course receive 1 general continuing education credits.
Courses Coming Soon in 2024
Overview
Contextualizing care is the process of adapting care to the personal circumstances and characteristics of individual patients. The failure to do so, when it results in suboptimal plan of care, is a contextual error. Contextual errors, which are common and often overlooked, adversely affect health care outcomes, and they contribute to overuse and misuse of medical services. This course is designed to provide clinicians and clinicians-in-training with essential knowledge, skills, and insight to acquire competency at contextualizing care during the medical encounter.
Course Objectives
After completing this course, you’ll be able to:
- Describe key terms and concepts essential to contextualizing care during a clinical encounter.
- Apply them to clinical scenarios to contextualize care and avoid contextual errors.
- Summarize research evidence on the impact of contextual errors and interventions to prevent them on health care service utilization and patient outcomes.
- Characterize both the opportunities and limits of contextualized care planning to mitigate the adverse effects of social risk factors during the clinical encounter.
- Theorize about the interpersonal qualities of clinicians who contextualize care.
Overview
Acquiring competency at contextualizing care requires learner-centered instruction at each phase of pre-clinical and clinical training. This course prepares both basic science faculty and clinician educators to facilitate skills development at contextualizing care, utilizing evidence-based methods that embed learning opportunities into existing medical school (and other health professions educational program) curricula, such as clinical teaching cases and clerkship experiences.
“Contextualizing Care for the Clinician 101" is a prerequisite.
Course Objectives
After completing this course, you’ll be able to:
- Describe why contextualizing care may be regarded as an essential clinical competency.
- Discuss the rationale for a continuum of education on contextualization of care extended from preclinical through clinical training and beyond.
- Outline both preclinical and clinical strategies for building both knowledge and skills at contextualizing care during clinical interactions.
Overview
This course is designed to prepare clinical champions with the skills and a toolkit for setting up a quality improvement program to prevent contextual errors through an innovative evidence-based systems intervention.
“Contextualizing Care for the Clinician 101” is a prerequisite.
Course Objectives
After completing this course, you’ll be able to:
- Describe the rationale for a an “audit and feedback” methodology for changing clinical practice.
- Outline the steps to setting up a quality improvement program to prevent contextual errors.
- Discuss the legal and ethical considerations when establishing a quality improvement program that relies on audio recordings of the clinical encounter.
- Review the evidence that the VA’s preventing contextual errors program is effective at changing clinician practice and improving meaningful healthcare outcomes.
The health sector is a major contributor to greenhouse gas emissions and presents clinicians with a unique opportunity to lead by example and decarbonize clinical practice. This module focuses on three key areas of care delivery that have a high environmental impact: anesthetic gases, inhalers, and medical supplies & devices. These areas account for a significant share of the health sector’s emissions, and offer potential for cost savings, improved patient outcomes, and reduced waste. The module presents evidence-based interventions that can be integrated into clinical practice to minimize greenhouse gas emissions stemming from care delivery.
While healthcare systems and governments around the world have acknowledged the climate crisis as a health crisis, knowledge of how to implement QI initiatives with a focus on environmental conservation, stewardship, and healthcare decarbonization is in its nascency. In this course, participants will learn how to integrate QI principles into environmental sustainability initiatives centered around the triple aim of improving population health, experience of care, and per capita cost and the triple bottom line framework of improving outcomes for people, the planet, and profits. Examples of replicable environmental sustainability initiatives will be reviewed, so that stakeholders in healthcare can further lead in decarbonization efforts.