Healthcare Education in “the Cloud” Pours Information Into Our Hands

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How does “the cloud” enhance the educational experience of today’s healthcare professional? The cloud gives students unbridled access to the information they need to grow in the profession.

Gone are the days when flashcards were the only way to test a student’s knowledge. Technological innovations such as the smartphone, tablet and apps have transformed the landscape of healthcare education forever. The quest for healthcare knowledge is migrating to apps where information is available 24/7.

healthcare education in the cloudYour Health: There is an App For That

A report released by mobile industry analyst Research2Guidance predicts that by 2017, 3.4 billion people will have accessto tablets and smartphones with access to mobile healthcare apps. Of the 3.4 billion, 1.7 billion people will have downloaded them. To say that healthcare apps are popular is an understatement. That being said, how does the cloud and the mobile movement in general help hospitals train their staff for 21st century healthcare?

Raining Down Information

The cloud allows hospitals to reach physicians and other healthcare practitioners wherever they are. Being “in the cloud” also allows hospitals to train staff year round without the ebb and flow of information that comes from older forms of information sharing such as journals and conferences.The power of the cloud and mobile technology is undeniable. Knowledge is power and technology releases that power for the good of humanity.

Thirst For Knowledge

The availability of healthcare training apps has exploded over the last couples of years. Many nurses and healthcare professionals turn to their smartphones to acquire new information on drugs, diseases and procedures.

A study conducted by Wolters Kluwer Health’s Lippincott Williams Wilkins (LLW) of 3,900 nurses indicated in early 2012, 71 percent of nurses were already using smartphones professionally. Medical practitioners should be encouraged to download reputable healthcare applications and use them to increase their fund of knowledge and reduce the likelihood of medical errors. Here is a short list of apps that hospitals can use to improve patient care:

  1. Nursing Central
  2. NurseTabs: Fundamentals by AusQuinn
  3. NCSBN Learning Extension Medication Flashcards
  4. The Merck Manuals For Mobile
  5. Shots By STFM

 

E-Learning Platforms

The power of e-Learning helps hospitals stay current on emerging trends using the right healthcare platforms. Here is a brief overview of the most popular platforms available:

HealthStream Learning Center – The most widely adopted learning management system in the healthcare industry. An estimated 3.4 million healthcare workers actively use their system.

TidWiT Social Learning Solutions –  A learning platform that offers social healthcare solutions for medical providers. The platform is 100% cloud based.

There are a variety of approaches that hospitals can use to provide continuing education for healthcare professionals, whether they are nurses, physicians, coders, or CEOs. Cloud, apps, and e-Learning solutions are the future. Incorporating these solutions into a comprehensive continuing education program creates durable and long-lasting change for all healthcare professionals. Contact us today to discuss how we can bring your current healthcare training program into the future.

Hiring a Healthcare Course Writer vs. Creating Your Own Content

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A common scenario in healthcare e-Learning goes something like this: A healthcare organization places a strong emphasis on education. For years they avidity medical design healthcare instructorhone their patient education programs, keep staff up to date with certifications, and develop some basic healthcare courses to provide additional training. They watch a live demo, are empowered by what they see, and they begin to move forward with curriculum development. This is where the problems start.

Becoming a healthcare course writer is not an easy task. Oftentimes people know what they want to say but have no idea how to say it. If they do manage to get the words on paper, they get lost in the world of learning management systems and authoring tools. They also discover that they must function as healthcare subject matter experts as well as healthcare course writers to ensure that the course is technically accurate. Before long, months go by and the project is scrapped.

This scenario underscores the importance of hiring an experienced healthcare instructional designer. Ideas for healthcare education often land in the virtual trash can before they ever reach the storyboard stage of development. This happens because the possibility of outsourcing course development was never considered. A talented healthcare course writer can collaborate on ideas and cultivate those that already exist in order to create a comprehensive course that is technically accurate and gets the job done.

Avidity Medical Design expands healthcare training to reach a broader base of clients. Whether you need help preparing staff for the transition to ICD-10 medical coding, or you need to train nurses on the fundamentals of patient assessments, you can have a visually pleasing course created and uploaded to your learning management system.

If you need help developing an in-depth course that accurately meets the learning objectives for your particular healthcare specialty, contact us. We will work with you to achieve your goals for curriculum development.

Management Participation is Fundamental to Successful Healthcare e-Learning

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When it comes to healthcare e-learning, multiple studies show that management should be involved in each stage of the curriculum development process. This is crucial for obtaining quality deliverables and measurable results that accurately reflect changes in healthcare. When you are looking for an instructional design service, ask how they will address management participation.

healthcare e-learning avidity medical design Specializing in creating blended learning solutions for both the educational and corporate sectors, we have an extensive background in healthcare as well as instructional and performance technology. This positions us to respond to the frequently expressed concerns of many managers:

Management Expertise: We understand the role of key stakeholders with regard to choosing the right content for curriculum development. If you are already working in the healthcare field, you may play a role in choosing the subject matter, mapping course objectives, determining your target audience, prioritizing the schedule for course deliverables, and maintaining cost efficiency. We can work with your priorities.

Real World Impact: Of course, e-learning is advantageous when it comes to cost and convenience. However, it also needs to deliver results and significant value. We can demonstrate that employees will be able to immediately transfer what they learn in our curriculum to their real world environment.

Full Customization: The best instructional design strategies incorporate higher levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy, which can be adapted to meet the needs of different students and different workplace settings. Our healthcare courses are tailored to your needs. You can choose a single topic, or create your own topic from a combination of healthcare subjects. We design curriculum in medical coding (including ICD-10 training courses), medical billing, medical claims processing, medical transcription, health information management, healthcare statistics, healthcare reimbursement, anatomy and physiology, dental assisting, and many other areas (including areas not directly related to healthcare). We can also train your healthcare trainers.

Avidity Medical Design specializes in all areas of instructional design for the healthcare industry. Contact us now to see how we can help you start developing your next course, and how we can help you meet your short- and long-term objectives for content development.