Online courses are quickly becoming the preferred way education is delivered to both university and college students as well as for staff in larger organizations. In a fast-paced health care environment, where there are multiple shifts and a variety of disciplines, online learning makes it easier to have personalized education and to stay up-to-date on the latest health care innovations.
“As a leading community academic hospital, continuing education for both clinical and non-clinical staff is a priority for North York General Hospital,” says Jennifer Bowman, Vice President People, Strategy & Clinical Support. “Ensuring education is accessible to and convenient for our staff and physicians supports our vision of excellence in integrated patient- and family-centred care through learning, innovation and partnerships.”
According to Bowman, providing staff with courses that can be accessed anytime and anywhere, keeps staff engaged and prepared with the latest practices to deliver high quality and safe care. North York General offers a variety of online courses including mandatory training which has courses on health, safety and privacy awareness. Clinical staff in different disciplines also stay up-to-date with new practices and procedures by taking specific courses for their area of care. Nurse Educators prepare presentations and quizzes and have them uploaded to their staff’s online learning profile.
“Several years ago it was much more challenging to have staff complete mandatory training or provide departmental education with in-class sessions or on paper,” says Jamie Campbell, Director Organizational Development. “Now we use our online learning management system, called My Learning Edge, which can be accessed from home or in hospital, and as a result we have seen a much higher compliance for mandatory training as well as department specific training.”
Other courses also offered to staff include Microsoft Office programs, a four-course workshop to become a Diversity Champion (training that provides staff, physicians and volunteers to become ambassadors, role models and key resources for staff who want to learn more about Diversity and participate in programs and various initiatives) as well as hospital specific tools. Manager onboarding information can also be uploaded to new employees taking on a managerial role to help them become familiar with hospital policies and procedures and key departments in the hospital.
“We continue to build our online educational resources for our staff and physicians,” Jamie says. “Our priority is to continually enhance our skills and knowledge through life-long learning. Online courses are one way we’re advancing care through teaching and learning.”