… Or, perhaps even advancing your degree? Many of our facilities offer programs to assist you with living your “passion for knowledge.” Some of these programs include financial support for continuing education courses. Other programs may include tuition reimbursement for university courses or certification credit. Through one of our most recent relationships with the Rocky Mountain University of Health Professions (RMUoHP), we will be tailoring some courses to fit your needs in the area of leadership development. The RMUoHP also offers post-graduate doctoral programs in both Physical and Occupational Therapy, which are designed to meet the needs of the working learner. If the pocket book is a little tight right now, take advantage of the new courses being added to our Learning Management System, Brainshark. Not only are the Brainshark courses helpful for navigating through our ever-changing healthcare environment, but our development plans include information to challenge you to grow as therapists and leaders. Watch for a release mid-summer 2012 on the Allen Cognitive Levels, Part I. And Part II, being released in August, will include demonstration training for administering components of the Allen Cognitive Battery of Assessment Tools.
If you haven’t had an opportunity to attend a learning event sponsored by your therapy resource team at Ensign Services, please watch www.ensigntherapy.com for upcoming opportunities. During the past 6 months, we have partnered with facilities in different states throughout our company to bring a variety of educational events to you. South Texas has co-sponsored Kinesio Taping I, II, and III. The KT I and II course will be offered in Dallas, Provo, Arizona and Southern California sometime over the next few months. Therapy Resources Gina Tucker-Roghi, Ryan Hough and Debbie Ellis have also become certified trainers in an 8-hour course on Dementia Care, and they are beginning to schedule trainings with interested facilities in select areas. We are developing a seating and positioning training to assist with filling a need identified by several of our DOR’s. Our Southern California Resources are working with education specialists to offer modalities courses. We are also looking to offer another CI Certification Course sometime later this year.
Your therapy resource team at Ensign Services is proud of the therapy programs you have built and continue to build in your rehabilitation departments. Your programs are creative, individualized, transformational and second to none! By providing students and interns an opportunity to see the team in action and learn from Clinical Instructors (aka, CI’s or mentors) who are absolutely passionate about the work that they do each day, you will make an impression and dispel any preconceived ideas about long-term care that any of these students may have had . Students are our lifeline, our future, our profession. The golden opportunity we have created as an organization, by partnering with so many different accredited Therapist and Assistant training programs (over 80!), provides us the ability to mold our future.
We recognize that the commitment required to mentor a student is great. We have committed resources to developing tools and education to enhance the mentoring experience. In November 2011, we held a CI Certification Course in Southern California, which was attended by 22 of our therapists. We are developing an instructor “manual” which will help to streamline answers to questions regarding regulatory requirements, How-To’s for Students when it comes to ROX and PCC, as well as time management and scheduling strategies. We are developing two new Brainshark Curriculum programs and will introduce our first modules in June 2012. The first curriculum will be designed for the student learner in one of our facilities (Orientation Basics, ROX /PCC for Students, Etc.). The second curriculum will be designed for the mentor with short trainings meant to compliment the manual mentioned earlier.
We are deeply passionate about learning and knowledge. Please share your ideas and needs for continued enhancement of our development offerings. You can provide your suggestions here on this website by submitting a blog or via e-mail to dbielek@ensigntherapy.com. Thank you for giving us the opportunity to better serve you and your therapists.