February 1  – March 1, 2021 (4 weeks)

CE/CME Credit Available: Nurse

Module Description

Visit any hospice website and you will see at least one thing that is consistent in marketing materials: hospice care is provided by an interdisciplinary team. This is true because the values that underlie hospice insist that quality care focus on the “multi-dimensions” of living and dying. Enter the manager! Skillful and well coordinated teams require strong leaders. A manager’s ability to move teams through various stages of development, positive problem solving, and effective team meetings requires vision and expertise. Maintaining focus on patient/family-centered plans of care is yet another set of critical skills for managers. This MDP Level II module will provide “key skills for hospice managers” who share the belief that the interdisciplinary team can make or break exceptional care.

Module Objectives

Upon completion of this module, participants will be able to:

      • Define the term “interdisciplinary” as it applies to end-of-life care teams;
        List key Medicare Conditions of Participation (CoPs) as they apply to the functioning of the interdisciplinary team;
      • Describe what makes a team effective including the expectations of both the leader and the team members and assess which of these characteristics are currently present in your team and which are needed to take your team to the next level;
      • Complete an initial assessment of your team meeting to define which tools are needed to produce concrete changes in the effectiveness, efficiency and effortlessness of the team meeting process;
      • Apply critical leadership skills to typical team leadership obstacles;
        Develop a summary of the “ideal” team.

Module Structure

The module will be instructor-facilitated and will be conducted online over a period of four weeks. During this time you will read online articles, develop solutions to specific situations, and take part in ongoing online discussions.  You can expect to spend 2 – 4 hours per week in these activities.

Participants will determine their own schedules for completing the course work; online learning does not require that you be in a classroom at a set time, which is a perfect arrangement for busy hospice managers! Completion of the module does require, however, that you participate in weekly assignments and post them by designated dates.

Faculty

Christin (Coco) O’Shaughnessy, MSW

Coco currently works as a consultant to the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO). She previously was the Consumer Programs and Services Director at NHPCO, and oversaw the Consumer Services Center, which provided support and resources to consumers and professionals regarding end-of-life care issues. Part of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation grant team, Caring Connections, she developed end-of-life and caregiving content to increase consumer education and awareness; created outreach materials for end-of-life professionals to utilize with those they served; and facilitated end-of-life care topic trainings in workplaces across the country. Prior to joining NHPCO in 2003, she served as a hospice social worker at Cedar Valley Hospice; and a social worker in long-term care, at both assisted living and nursing facilities. Coco has been working in end-of-life care for over 25 years and enjoys focusing on consumer and professional outreach and education.

Module Requirements

Please note: if you have taken prior online MDP courses, the course completion requirements have changed. For successful completion of the module,  all participants must now complete all forums with a minimum grade for each forum of 80% or higher.  In addition, all participants must complete the Course Assessment (exam) with a minimum passing grade of 80% and complete the course evaluation.  A Certificate of Course Completion towards the Level II Designation of the Hospice Manager Development Program is then awarded along with CEs for nurses who have requested this in advance.  If you have any questions, please contact the course faculty for clarification.

Continuing Education

Continuing education credit is available for nurses who complete this module and pay required fees (see Module Fees) for continuing education.

Nurse: NHPCO is accredited as a provider of continuing nursing education by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation.

NHPCO designates this activity for a maximum of 8 contact hours. Nurses should claim only the contact hours commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity. Accredited status by ANCC refers only to continuing nursing education and does not imply endorsement of any commercial product discussed in conjunction with this activity.

Module Fees

The module fee is $95 for members and $190 for non-members. There is an additional $25 fee for nurses requesting continuing education contact hours. Note: If you are requesting continuing education, the $25 fee must be paid during registration ($95 + $25).

Late Registration Information

Please note: Due to administrative constraints, if you are registering less than 2 business days prior to the module start date, there is a late fee of $25. Late registrations are processed only over the phone; call NHPCO’s Solutions Center   at 800/646-6460. Please have credit card information ready for phone registrations.

Registration Cancellation Policy

All cancellation requests must be submitted in writing to conferences@nhpco.org. A $25 processing fee will apply to all cancellations. Cancellations made on the day the module starts or afterward are not eligible for a refund.