The goal of this course is to provide providers with training on suicide assessment, treatment, and management that meets the regulatory standards of the state of Washington.

This article discussed pediatric bony injuries in detail by outlining the mechanisms, physical exam findings, imaging modality recommendations, and initial treatment for pediatric knee fractures.

Hospitals are standardizing care based on the best evidence to reduce inconsistencies, improve high-quality and safe patient care, and minimize costs. Nurses and leaders alike are responsible for accelerating efforts to ensure the adoption of evidence-based practice exists and is embedded into all aspects of patient care. This course presents various evidence-based practice (EBP) models and frameworks that aid nurses in translating the best evidence into practice. Adopting an EBP model creates a standardized approach to inquiry and guides the implementation of best practices.

You will learn about the three different presentations of ADHD along with key behaviors of each. In addition to specific diagnostic criteria of ADHD, you will learn how to identify typical symptoms, particularly how symptoms manifest differently in individuals of different ages.

This course also discusses some of the possible causes of ADHD as well as current treatment options for children, teenagers, and young adults, including both pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions. A series of experiential lessons and interactive exercises will help you practice and apply what you have learned.

This course will provide you with information about the numerous risk and protective factors of suicide. You will learn effective screening approaches you can use to identify elevated risk. You will also learn how to follow a positive screening with an in-depth clinical assessment, including several different models you can use to guide your assessment. The goal of this course is to provide alcohol and drug counseling, marriage and family therapy, counseling, psychology, and social work professionals in health and human services with skills to identify individuals at increased risk of suicide.

An approach that prevents and treats acute pain while avoiding unnecessary exposure to opioids is the goal of pain management (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services [DHHS], 2019b). Clinicians should integrate patient-centered approaches, therapies, technology, and self-care strategies while collaborating with other professionals to manage pain (Cohen et al., 2020). However, barriers to the use of best practices for pain management are prevalent at the patient-provider, practice, and systems levels. Resolution of stigma and structural inequalities that limit access to evidence-based pain treatments is required to eliminate barriers.

The goal of this course is to provide healthcare professionals with evidence-based guidance for managing pain while weighing the risks and benefits of pain medications with functional improvement and harm prevention.

This course focuses specifically on early interventions that are designed to reduce suicide risk. You will learn how these early interventions impact suicide risk. You will also learn of examples and the role that programs highlighting connectedness, life skills, and resilience play in preventing suicide. The goal of this course is to provide social work, psychology, nursing, alcohol and drug counseling, marriage and family therapy, and counseling professionals in health and human services with information about community-based, upstream suicide prevention approaches. 

Nurses encounter victims of domestic violence or intimate partner violence regardless of where they work. Those who practice in offices, hospitals, clinics, homes, or facilities must be aware that living with domestic violence may be part of a person’s daily life. Even though education for healthcare professionals and routine screening in EDs is mandated, many abused people do not receive needed support. Nurses are able to recognize and help victims, yet do not necessarily receive education about domestic violence. This updated CE module provides information nurses need to increase their understanding of and provide support to people experiencing domestic and intimate partner violence.

Disclaimer: Images in this course depict violence that has been inflicted on children and adults. They may be disturbing to some learners.

Motivational Interviewing (MI) is a way of communicating that draws out people’s own thoughts and beliefs in order to help them resolve ambivalence about change. In addition to examining the underlying spirit of MI, you will learn specific skills and techniques that will support the MI processes of engaging, focusing, evoking, and planning with clients as they discover their own reasons for change. 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 the skills to define and demonstrate the core concepts of Motivational Interviewing.

The perioperative nurse plays a primary role in the operative process. Knowledge of procedures, appropriate patient assessment, and care management guidelines will positively impact patient outcomes. Patients consider anesthesia to be a major risk of surgery and expect perioperative team members to be their advocates by caring for their pre-, intra-, and post-operative needs and providing safe and effective care. This course discusses anesthetics and adjuvant medications used in the clinical setting, anesthesia-related complications, and the nurse’s role in management of perioperative patients.

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).

As a behavioral health professional, you know how challenging it can be to understand the complexities of diagnosing and treating personality disorders. Drawing upon guidelines from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5) and current empirical literature, this course offers you a comprehensive look at the etiology, categories, and diagnostic criteria for personality disorders while considering differential diagnoses and co-occurring disorders. Lastly, this course offers information on best practices for the treatment of personality disorders.

The increased emphasis on pain management to improve functionality and quality of life has contributed to significantly more opioid prescriptions. Their availability led to widespread misuse across the nation. This course will address regulation and misuse of opioids and evidence-based management of chronic pain.

Do no harm: A fundamental principle of medical care, yet thousands of patients suffer harm from medical errors every day. Some reports estimate annual deaths from medical errors in the U.S. to be as high as 250,000, but a more recent study revealed that number may be highly inflated (Rodwin et al., 2020). The actual number of preventable deaths estimated by a meta-analysis was 22,165, with most occurring in people expected to have less than 3 months to live. For those who were expected to live longer than 3 months, 7,150 deaths occurred. The difference may be due to over-estimation or from initiatives to reduce errors since initial values were released. Regardless, healthcare professionals are obliged to do no harm, so continued efforts are needed to reduce medical errors.

This course is intended to educate nurses, physicians, and physician assistants on the causes and strategies for preventing medical errors.

The Health and Medicine Division’s (HMD) Healthy People 2030 and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality have highlighted the health disparities affecting LGBTQ+ populations. As evidence of health-illness patterns continues to be reported in the literature, this module presents the complex social determinants of health unique among the LGBTQ+ community. Information will be analyzed based on the six conceptual perspectives for understanding LGBTQ+ health suggested by the HMD: stigma, social constructionism, identity affirmation, life course, intersectionality, and social ecology. The goal of this course is to provide social workers, nurses, occupational therapists, pharmacists, speech-language pathologists and audiologists, physical therapists, and physicians with education regarding the issues of the LGBTQ+ community within the healthcare system.

The two most common trauma-related disorders are acute stress disorder (ASD) and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The goal of this educational program is to provide nurses, social workers, marriage and family therapists, professional counselors, and psychologists in health and human services settings with information on the diagnostic criteria for acute stress disorder and posttraumatic stress disorder, steps in the diagnostic process, and psychological and pharmacological interventions to treat PTSD.

Anesthesia administration has become increasingly safer, but is not without risk. Patient- and family-centered care and the desire to save costs has led to a shift in perioperative care needs from “stabilize and admit” to “stabilize and discharge.” Each patient undergoing anesthesia requires competent, professional nursing staff to assist in timely and safe medication administration, maintenance, and recovery. Knowledge of anesthetic techniques, agents, and adjuvants is vital to this competence.

This course provides an overview of how anxiety impacts children and adolescents. You will learn about the specific types of anxiety disorders and the multiple pathways by which anxiety can develop. As you progress through this course, you will learn assessment strategies and evidence-based interventions that you can implement to identify and treat these disorders in children and adolescents.

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.

HIPAA rules underlie every service related to behavioral health, and they change to meet evolving trends. There are potentially catastrophic organizational and individual consequences if the current HIPAA rules are not followed. This course will help you to identify potential legal and ethical issues related to HIPAA, improve your compliance approach, and develop more effective risk management strategies.

The goal of this course is to assist alcohol and drug counselors, marriage and family therapists, professional counselors, psychologists, social workers, and nurses in health and human services settings in understanding and applying current HIPAA regulations.

Medication-assisted treatment (MAT) is an effective, yet underused, approach to the treatment of opioid use disorder. Misconceptions about what MAT is, how it is used, and whether it is helpful, are common. Your clients with opioid use disorder may share these misconceptions, creating a barrier to treatment. By taking this course, you will have information that you can share with your clients and their family members about what MAT is, how it helps, its major components, and the medications used in MAT. Note: If you are a prescriber, this course does not meet the federal requirements to qualify for a waiver to prescribe and dispense buprenorphine. You will need to pursue additional training to meet those requirements. The goal of this educational program is to provide alcohol and drug counseling, nursing, professional counseling, social work, and psychology professionals in health and human services settings with an overview of what MAT is, how it helps individuals with opioid use disorder, and the medications used in MAT programs.

People with bipolar and related disorders often have work, school, and relationship problems. Up to 40% of people with bipolar disorders are misdiagnosed with other conditions (Hashimoto et al., 2018; Stiles et al., 2018). Misdiagnosis can lead to delays in treatment and worse consequences for the client, such as cognitive impairment, hospitalization, disability, and medical issues.

People with bipolar disorders also have a 20 to 30 times greater suicide risk than the general population (American Psychiatric Association [APA], 2022; Overs et al., 2021). It is important that professionals are able to recognize, assess, and treat bipolar and related disorders to help decrease the negative effects of delayed diagnosis.

The goal of this course is to provide skills for addictions, behavioral health counseling, marriage and family therapy, nursing, psychology, and social work professionals in the health and human services setting to gain knowledge about recognizing and addressing symptoms of bipolar and related disorders.

Data is being applied in ways never before seen by payers and providers to drive healthcare improvement through an analytic approach. Data can be applied to improve healthcare costs, quality, and outcomes. To understand how data is being utilized, you must first understand the broad perspective of what experts are calling the “data revolution” in healthcare, or the “age of big data.” It is also important to know what this means from a technology perspective.

There is also a micro-level of healthcare data application within the payer setting that has different ways in which data is helping payers to improve overall population health, manage healthcare costs, and inform the creation of innovative pilot programs. For those working in a healthcare setting, it is important to know how healthcare data is applied from a payer’s perspective. This includes member case management selection, the intersection of healthcare data and member preference, and how data is being used to inform best practices through medical necessity criteria (MNC) and clinical guidelines.

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.

This course will focus on the biological and psychosocial factors that are unique to adolescents and that impact their vulnerability to the negative effects of opioid use. You will increase your understanding of the scope of opioid use disorders among adolescents and young adults and improve your ability to effectively identify and treat problematic, nonmedical use of prescription and other opioids. 

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 services with information on the development, prevalence, and treatment of opioid use disorders in adolescent and young adult populations.

In this course, you will learn about the effects of age and life transitions on alcohol and drug use in women and how these are reflected in treatment methodologies. A host of stressors and life transitions can be accompanied by significant changes in substance use and can be implicated in women's development of a substance use disorder. You will learn ways that you can provide gender-sensitive treatment to women struggling with substance use or at risk of developing a substance use disorder. The goal of this educational program is to provide marriage and family counseling, nursing, professional counseling, social work, and psychology professionals in health and human services settings with information about substance use treatment for women at various stages of development.

Rates of suicide among youth continue to increase, making it essential for behavioral health clinicians and other professionals working with adolescents and transition-age youth to understand the dynamics of suicide among young people. After providing a foundation on how widespread the problem is and the prevailing theories about the drivers of suicidal behaviors, this course will teach you about how to effectively screen potentially suicidal youth and ways you can intervene to lower their risk. The goal of this course is to provide alcohol and drug counseling, behavioral counseling, marriage and family therapy, nursing, psychology, and social work professionals in health and human services settings with skills for reducing suicide risk in adolescents and transition-age youth.

Pain is often underestimated and undertreated in the pediatric population due to many factors. As a result, children’s health outcomes are directly impacted without proper recognition and pain management, and quality of life is reduced. Physicians and nursing professionals must learn to assess and treat pediatric pain appropriately while caring for hospitalized children. This course describes the past and future status of pain management in children, pharmacological and non-pharmacological management options, and the complexities of managing pain in special populations.

A diagnosis of major neurocognitive disorder can be devastating due to the losses associated with the disease. Neurocognitive disorders affect every part of a person’s life, and as behavioral health professionals, we have an opportunity to offer support, comfort, and care. The goal of this course is to provide education to beginner and intermediate addiction specialists, behavioral health counselors, marriage and family therapists, nursing, psychology, and social work professionals working in health and human services settings on how to evaluate, assess, and treat older adults with major neurocognitive disorder.

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.

Sexuality and gender identity have received significant attention in the last few decades across the spectrum of health and human services. This module presents a brief overview of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ+) community and its history within society and healthcare systems. It offers definitions of key concepts related to sexuality and gender identity, as well as general implications for clinical education, practice, and research. This topic is constantly evolving, requiring healthcare professionals to continually need education on this topic. The goal of this course is to provide nursing, occupational therapy, pharmacy, physical therapy, social work, speech-language, and pathology/audiology professionals with education around the historical context of the LGBTQ+ population and best practices when interacting with and providing care for the LGBTQ+ population.

Sexuality and gender identity have received significant attention in the last few decades across the spectrum of health and human services. This module presents a brief overview of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ+) community and its history within society and healthcare systems. It offers definitions of key concepts related to sexuality and gender identity, as well as general implications for clinical education, practice, and research. This topic is constantly evolving, requiring healthcare professionals to continually need education on this topic. The goal of this course is to provide nursing, occupational therapy, pharmacy, physical therapy, social work, speech-language, and pathology/audiology professionals with education around the historical context of the LGBTQ+ population and best practices when interacting with and providing care for the LGBTQ+ population.

This course will help you determine the steps you need to take to build and implement an effective advance care planning program and describe how resources from the FIVE WISHES framework program can help. You will learn how to build support, determine goals and measures, and identify processes and standards to ensure your program is making a difference for your care recipients and your healthcare organization.

The goal of this course is to provide providers in health and human services settings with skills for preventing suicide among veterans.

Diabetes is not an uncommon condition in today’s healthcare systemthe U.S.. This high-volume condition can be managed very effectively, but diabetes disease management can also become very complicated. How can patients learn to manage their own diabetes? What strategies are most effective in teaching patient self-care? By creating an action plan with their patients, primary care providers can not only help to improve patient outcomes, but they can also empower the patients to take a bigger role in their own their disease management. When patients take on more responsibility for their care, resources (both time and economic) are freed up and can be allocated to other patients or areas of need. However, creating an action plan requires input from both the primary care provider and the patient, and no two plans are likely to be the same. Factors such as finances, living situation, or other social determinants of health must all must be considered when putting together a plan. A patient’s diet may also play a role. In this module, the topics of action plans, the social determinants of health, and nutritional counseling will be explored.

The goal of this course is to provide case/care management, nursing, and social work professionals with information about diabetes management.

This course will guide you through understanding best practices in incident report writing. It will assist you in understanding how those practices help protect the health and safety of the person you support, while at the same time protecting you. In this course, you will identify factors that affect the quality of incident reports and investigate elements that affect memory and recall. You will focus on reducing factors that negatively impact the completeness and accuracy of incident reports. Demonstrating your understanding of the guidelines taught in this course will ensure your documentation adheres to legal, ethical, and programmatic standards. While completing this course, you will review incident report notes and apply what you have learned to identify unclear, subjective, and ungrammatical elements within the notes. This course is intended for direct support professionals

At the organizational level, routine implementation of evidence-based practices that can identify and intervene with at-risk individuals, has been lacking for many years and remains so in many settings. The goal of this course is to provide knowledge about evidence-based, suicide-specific interventions. This course for healthcare professionals will focus on working with at-risk individuals focuses on interventions for those who have made a recent suicide attempt or who are at risk due to suicidal thoughts, feelings, or behaviors. Also discussed are ways to summarize the process for completing a safety plan and for reducing access to lethal means.

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.

Ensuring that a healthcare system is culturally competent can reduce health disparities. Healthcare employees who have effective interpersonal and working relationships are essential to successful healthcare outcomes. Healthcare staff provide care to individuals from many backgrounds, so it is essential that they get proper Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) training. DEI training should be integrated into the standard hiring and onboarding process for the entire healthcare workforce. The goal of this course is to provide healthcare employees with training about Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI).

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.

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.

Cerebrovascular accidents (CVAs), or strokes, are a    leading cause of death in the U.S. (Centers for Disease Control [CDC], 2021). Patient prognosis and the preservation of functional status are highly dependent on receiving prompt, timely treatment. A thorough understanding of stroke pathophysiology is crucial, as is assessing, diagnosing, and determining the appropriate plan of care. With this understanding, clinicians will be better equipped to make the best possible decisions in the provision of care for their patients.

As a healthcare professional transporting patients to the ED, you may serve patients with symptoms indicative of behavioral health disorders, such as depressive, bipolar, and anxiety disorders. In some situations, the ED provider must administer psychiatric medications. However, if possible, it is prudent to defer their use until the patient is admitted to an inpatient mental health facility or seen as an outpatient. In many instances, the reason for presentation in the ED is an adverse reaction to psychiatric medications.

Dependent and older adults are a population who are vulnerable to abuse from someone they know, such as family members, service or care providers, and others. There are hundreds of thousands of investigated reports of cases of abuse each year. And yet, it is well known that dependent adult abuse and elder abuse are significantly under-reported. This type of abuse has a significant impact on the adult victim’s health, safety, emotional well-being, and ability to engage in daily life. The first step to addressing the problem is to heighten awareness of abuse of dependent and older individuals, in particular among those who serve them or have frequent contact with them. Individuals working with dependent and older adults must be knowledgeable about the common types of abuse perpetrated against these adults. They should also be familiar with the responsibilities related to reporting suspected or known dependent adult abuse or elder abuse.

While most health centers have some quality improvement (QI) functions established, many have not implemented a comprehensive, organization-wide QI program. Improving patient care and outcomes is the primary goal of QI programs. There are also financial benefits to providing quality care, especially as our healthcare system, including the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), moves towards a “pay for performance” model (NEJM Catalyst, 2018b). This course will explain a comprehensive approach to implementing QI systems. You will learn about the essential elements of a QI program, including principles, program infrastructure, and process components. You will also learn how you can put the Model for Improvement QI methodology into action. Finally, you will learn how to identify quality-related problems using proactive and reactive strategies.

Healthcare and behavioral health professionals providing services on the front lines of a sustained health crisis are exposed to traumatic events on a regular basis. Staff deemed essential have little escape from the grueling demands of their daily work. Professional self-care routines are often insufficient or seemingly impossible during times of heavy demand. Without healthy work-life balance, effective self-care practices, and social connection, maladaptive coping mechanisms may surface or return. Many professionals experience feelings of helplessness when, despite their best efforts, they are unable to provide clinical solutions for their clients or patients. Based on what is known about trauma, it is imperative for professionals to effectively address self-care needs in a timely manner, for themselves and for those they serve.

The goal of this course is to provide the clinician with up-to-date best practices for identifying and treating patients with PAD. It includes symptoms, complications, risk factors, and modifications of PAD. In addition, diagnostic tests, assessment, and treatment strategies will be discussed.

Pediatric patients are not small adults and medical errors and patient harm in the pediatric population differ in many ways from those associated with adults. For example, one study estimated that adverse drug events occur three times more often in pediatric patients than adults, due in large part to their smaller physical size, early developmental stages, and dependence on others for care (Mueller et al., 2019). All perioperative nurses and surgical technologists should have a fundamental understanding of the anatomical, physiological, psychological, and emotional differences of children compared to adults and how these differences impact the care needs of pediatric patients in the pre-, intra-, and postoperative phases.

Mechanical ventilation is a cornerstone of critical care, offering life-saving therapy for patients experiencing respiratory failure for many disease processes. Before 2020, it was estimated that over 300,000 patients receive mechanical ventilation in the U.S. per year (NHSN, 2019). That number is now likely much higher considering the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Although it is a lifesaving intervention, patients who receive mechanical ventilation are at an increased risk for complications, such as ventilator-associated pneumonia, sepsis, volutrauma/barotrauma, acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), and others. These complications may lead to longer ICU and hospital stays, increased risk of disability and death, and increased healthcare costs. For these reasons, clinicians at every level need to understand the concepts, theories, and practices guiding the management of patients receiving mechanical ventilation. 

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.

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common type of arrhythmia. It affects approximately 2.7 million people in the U.S. and is a leading risk factor for stroke (AHA, 2016). AF is most commonly seen in patients who are over age 60 years. Many patients with AF are asymptomatic, making it difficult to diagnose. AF can increase the risk of stroke if not diagnosed and treated. Approximately 15% of people who experience a stroke have AF (AHA, 2016). Strokes resulting from AF can be prevented with early screening, diagnosis, and intervention.

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.

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.

Opioids are used to treat severe pain but also include serious risks if the medication is misused. The misuse of prescribed and illicit opioids contributes to rising numbers of opioid overdose deaths. This course will provide you with an overview of opioid use disorder, detailed information to gather during a comprehensive assessment, and treatment options to implement with clients diagnosed with opioid use disorder. 

Pain management in the emergency department relies heavily on the use of opioid analgesics, which generates risk for patients to develop long term opioid use or an opioid use disorder.  Multimodal analgesia can improve the patient experience and reduce the risks of opioid use if emergency providers approach pain with a more critical mindset.This activity is designed to help emergency providers improve management of pain while decreasing patient exposure to opioids.  It is also designed to help providers navigate how to manage patients with opioid use disorder.

The National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) is a tool used to measure the severity of stroke symptoms and aid in identifying the location of the injury. The NIHSS has been shown to strongly predict the likelihood of a patient’s recovery after stroke. 

The goal of this course is to equip clinicians with the knowledge necessary to apply the NIHSS to patients experiencing an acute stroke.

In this course, you will learn to identify different depressive disorders, as well as the unique ways depression manifests in children and adolescents. Additionally, you will learn to recognize risk factors for both depression and suicidality in youth.  

An integrated care model treats the whole child by combining primary care and mental healthcare in one setting. Within this model, treatment providers understand how to screen for depression and suicidality in order to coordinate care. You will learn about specific instruments useful for detecting depression and suicidality among youth. An understanding of the root causes of depression will highlight the rationale for various treatment approaches. Lastly, you will be able to describe the best practices available to help children and adolescents manage depression.  

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.

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. 

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.

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.

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.

The goal of this course is to educate healthcare providers on methods for safe and responsible administration of controlled substances for the management of chronic pain.

Anxiety disorders, the most common psychiatric illnesses, affect millions of American adults, filling their lives with overwhelming anxiety, fear, and uncertainty out of proportion to any actual danger. These symptoms often persist for significant periods of time, and if not treated, can grow progressively worse. Anxiety disorders frequently occur in conjunction with other psychiatric or physical illnesses, making symptoms even worse. This course provides an overview of signs and symptoms as well as the most effective psychopharmacological and psychotherapeutic treatments available. New and improved therapies can help most people with anxiety disorders lead productive, fulfilling lives. This course will help you recognize anxiety disorders in those you serve and implement the most appropriate form of treatment.

The Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA) was enacted to prevent patient dumping by hospitals seeking to avoid unrecoverable costs of care for patients without insurance or the ability to pay for medical services. Language within the statute has led to inconsistencies in how it has been interpreted. Patient dumping and inappropriate medical screening examinations (MSEs) are the most common reasons for EMTALA violations (Ladd & Gupta, 2021). This course will describe how key terms are currently interpreted and how they apply to hospitals with a dedicated emergency department (ED). In addition, learners will have an opportunity to review cases where EMTALA violations were alleged and judgments applied by the courts. 

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.

Alcohol use disorder is a primary health condition that interacts with and complicates many other health problems and psychiatric disorders. Unfortunately, only a small number of people with alcohol use disorder receive appropriate treatment for substance use issues. The incorporation of screening for alcohol use disorders in a general medical setting can significantly increase the number of individuals with alcohol use disorders who are identified and treated. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved 4 medications to treat alcohol use disorder, making treatment in primary care and other general medical settings a viable alternative to specialty care. This course will give you valuable information about these medications as well as several medications used off-label.

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.

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.

The patient interview is the most important part of your exam. Gaining the patient’s perspective and learning more about issues important to them can guide you in developing patient-specific care plans. This course will discuss how to conduct patient-centered interviews. You will learn interviewing methods to effectively elicit the important details about a patient's reason for presenting to the clinic. Information will also be presented on how to approach challenging situations that arise during patient encounters.

In just over a year, COVID-19 has changed how healthcare is delivered in the U.S. Guidelines governing preventive measures, including how we interact with everyone from patients to members of our own families, have undergone a process of near-constant evolution. Treatment recommendations have been regularly updated as scientists and providers have learned more about how the virus affects the human body. This course provides an overview of the latest information about the virus, preventing transmission, illness classification and treatment of patients with symptomatic disease, and currently authorized vaccines.

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.

Regardless of discipline or setting, routine behavioral health screening will allow you to provide the best care possible. This course will provide a review of some of the most widely used behavioral health screening tools currently available to support collaborative care. In addition, we will explore important factors for consideration when integrating such screening tools into the workflow of your practice. 

The goal of this course is to provide addictions, behavioral health counseling, marriage and family therapy, nursing, psychology, and social work professionals in community health settings with information on how to screen clients for behavioral health conditions.

People have used substances since ancient times. Sometimes substances were used as a medicine to treat an ailment, for recreation, or to support spiritual practices. The desire to find ways to feel or think differently is a normal part of the human experience. However, some people who use drugs develop patterns of compulsive use that are hard for them to control due to how the drug impacts their brain. They can experience harmful, even fatal, consequences. In 2019, the results from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health estimated that 20.4 million people, or 7.4% of the population of the U.S. had a substance use disorder (SAMHSA, 2020a). As behavioral health providers, we have opportunities in our interactions with clients to address thoughts, beliefs, and behaviors around substance use. We can support clients around learning about substances, the impact of substances, work to prevent or identify problematic use and substance use disorders, as well as offer information about treatment or provide treatment to clients.

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.

Concussions are head injuries that are caused by a traumatic, biomechanical force. The symptoms of concussion are primarily the result of functional disturbances, not structural injuries, and may include headache, dizziness, changes in mood or behavior, and changes in sleep patterns. Despite increased awareness of the injury, concussion remains under-reported and under-diagnosed. Diagnosis of a concussion is based largely on the presence of clinical symptoms as there is no quantitative test for concussion. Neuroimaging is considered to be overused in the acute evaluation of concussions since imaging technologies, such as CT, cannot diagnose concussion. CT can only identify more serious injuries, such as hemorrhages or contusions. In the future, serum biomarkers may be helpful in stratifying patients at increased risk of related injuries or complications from concussion.

Nurses working with older adults will likely encounter wounds. Both acute and chronic wounds are more likely to occur in older adults than their younger counterparts because of the chronic conditions associated with the wounds, such as vascular disease, venous insufficiency, and diabetes mellitus. This course discusses the effects aging has on the skin’s function. It also discusses common wounds seen in older adults. 

This course provides an overview of essential skills and considerations for engaging in sensitive and effective advance care planning conversations. You will learn the most important decision domains to address as outlined in the FIVE WISHES® framework, how to demonstrate compassionate communication, and conversation skills specific to eliciting values-based end-of-life care decisions.

The goal of this course is to provide healthcare professionals in all settings with enhanced communication skills related to advance care planning.

Employee Cyber Security Awareness Training is more important now than it has ever been. Data breaches and hacking may sound unlikely, but cyber-attacks occur daily. In many cases, businesses are unprepared, because management does not understand the risk. Many companies believe they will not be the target of an attack. The truth is that all companies must prepare for a cyber-attack by having an individual or team in place to protect from such an attack.

In an emergency department, information often flows amongst providers and patients quickly because of urgent, sometimes life-threatening, situations. Due to the volume of information being shared, as well as the need for it to be shared quickly and accurately, emergency department providers must be especially careful to safeguard patient information.

The goal of this course is to update nursing professionals in the acute care setting with basic information about the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and 42 CFR Part 2.

In this course, you will meet two different managers and evaluate the results of their autocratic and servant leadership styles. By understanding these leadership styles and their impact, you are better able to bring these learnings to life in your work as a leader. You will also be provided with a Servant-Leader Toolkit with actionable components you can build on. The Toolkit includes best practices, leadership soft skills, and the top 9 characteristics of servant leaders.

The focus of this course is coagulopathies. In general, the term coagulopathy refers to bleeding disorders. This course will provide a review of the components of a clot. It will also provide you with valuable information about how to care for those with coagulopathies such as immune thrombocytopenia (ITP), disseminated intravascular coagulopathy (DIC), heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT), and warfarin-induced coagulopathy.

The goal of this course is to provide nurses in the critical care setting with a general overview of coagulopathies, including the recognition and nursing management of ITP, DIC, HIT, and warfarin-induced coagulopathy. 

Very often, teams with highly talented people and a skilled leader are not able to sustain the vision and achieve optimum results over a long period of time. It is critical for a team leader to continually assess, evaluate, and monitor the team’s commitment level toward achieving its goals. In this course, you will explore the importance of identifying team dynamics associated with assessment and motivation that can help or hinder your team’s success. You will also learn some practical actions for facilitating emotional buy-in and commitment to achieving greater team results.

Heart failure (HF) treatment is costly and requires a multidisciplinary approach. Evidence-based treatment guidelines improve patient outcomes, and it is essential to become familiar with these guidelines to reduce patient mortality. Healthcare team members play a significant role in treating acute HF (AHF), helping to reduce the morbidity and mortality of the disease and decrease the use and costs associated with care. This course aims to educate nurses and nutrition and dietetics professionals in the acute care setting about evidence-based heart failure treatment guidelines.

The role of a preceptor is vital to an organization’s ability to efficiently and effectively onboard an individual to a new department or work unit. This course is designed to include principles and practices for precepting new employees across healthcare settings. It introduces the learner to the fundamentals of the preceptor role and provides best practices for being an effective preceptor. Preceptors exhibit professionalism and best practices in their work units. Being a preceptor requires skill, talent, and preparation to yield the best outcomes.

Treatment for HIV/AIDS has significantly improved over the last few decades and has reduced morbidity and mortality rates in patients living with HIV/AIDS. The use of highly active antiretroviral therapy (ART) slows the progression of the disease by reducing the amount of HIV in the blood. Determining the most effective treatment regimen is a complex process and will require the use of several medications. The goal of this course is to provide pharmacists in acute care settings with an overview of HIV medication classes and factors influencing treatment decisions.

Antibiotic stewardship is a movement which aims to treat this powerful group of medications resourcefully, implementing antibiotic use with evidence-based practice. As part of the antibiotic stewardship movement, providers and other team members such as nurses are called upon to be stewards of antibiotics so that these medications can continue to be used to fight infections in the future. In this module, you will learn about antibiotic stewardship and apply your knowledge in several case studies. You will learn about the Core Elements of Antibiotic Stewardship developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and how you can apply components of the program to your nursing practice.

Cervical cancer continues to affect thousands of women, but increases in routine screening for women ages 21 to 65 have resulted in a steady decrease in the number of diagnosed cases over the past decade. This course discusses the basics of etiology, risk factors, screening methods, diagnosis and staging, and subsequent treatment of cervical cancer.