Careful planning is critical for a successful implementation and integration of the Courseware within your organization. The roll-out can be customized to each organization to ensure the Courseware becomes integrated into the current education plan rather than existing as a separate entity.


For a successful roll-out, several decisions must be made before the facility teams are introduced to the Courseware. AIS can help you to determine the best approach for your organization. Once these decisions are made, AIS can incorporate the approach into the initial roll-out and planning meetings.


AIS recommends, before implementation, discussing and finalizing decisions about the following items (discussed in more detail below):

  • Training Details (roll-out timeline, course content, etc.)

  • Completion and Compliance Monitoring

  • Communication Plan

  • Education Policy


Training Details

Several decisions must be made regarding the training required at different times:

  • Initial implementation (roll-out)

  • Remedial training

  • Refresher training

  • Training for new hires or following position changes


Initial Implementation

The initial implementation requires decisions regarding:

  • Account Types
    Account types allow different types of access for employees at each level of the organization. Employees must be assigned to one or more account type, and the organization must determine how the Dashboard and Reports will be used and communicated to monitor progress (for example, whether one person or several people will have access to reports). The following account types are available:

Learner Account
This is the default account type. Employees with this account type have access to the eTraining modules, the user evaluations (tests), and their own results/CE certifications. They do not have access to the Dashboard or other Reports.

Educator Account
This account type provides the same access as the learner account, plus access to the Dashboard and Reports for all accounts.

Reporting Account
Employees with this account type have access to the Dashboard and Reports. This account type does not provide access to the eTraining modules or tests, so a separate learner account (if applicable) would also be required.

Help Desk Account
This account is used for account maintenance and provides the ability to create password resets, create additional test attempts, correct spelling errors, and modify user locations and job categories. This account type is used by members of the core project team or a designee.

 

  • Timeline for completion of roll-out
    The roll-out schedule aims to complete the training with the least possible interruption of work in the facility. Most organizations use a 30-day, 6-week, or 90-day roll-out. A roll-out shorter than 30 days should only be considered during an orientation period (for example and MDS Coordinator). A 30 day roll out schedule would require up to 8 hours a week of dedicated training. A 5 day roll out would require up to 7 hours a day. A 90-day roll out for the full product is optimal, because that involves the least disruption of the work schedule.

Example of Schedule and Training Time in Appendix

  • One-stage or two-stage roll-out?
    AIS strongly recommends using a two-stage roll-out, in which a test group of expert facility staff or regional educators/mentors takes an accelerated Train-the-Trainer version of the training in stage one, starting two or three weeks before field-level roll-out. These learners would then become trainers or mentors for the staff who are trained during the second stage.

  • What Learning model will be used for each Role.

The learning model (or models) recommended:

    • Self-directed

    • Educator- or facilitator-led

    • One-on-one with mentor

 

  • For each Role, What Modules or Sections (RAI 3.0 Series) will be required.

Example of Learning Matrix in Appendix

  • What will be required for successful completion of each assigned module

Evaluations:

    • Pre Test

    • Post Test

    • Survey

NOTE 1:

AIS strongly recommends that all staff take the pre-tests and the post-tests so that you can analyze results and develop focused training based on the results.

NOTE 2:

The identified educators/mentors should take the course content and tests before roll-out. Ideally, they would complete before roll-out, but at a minimum should be a least a week or two ahead of the field staff. Educators/mentors will also require education on the Dashboard (if applicable) and the reports prior to implementation in the field.

NOTE 3:

Passing grade on the Post Test must be achieved for CE credits.

Completion of the Survey after finishing the course is required for CE credits.

  • Communication strategy before and during roll-out will be critical to success (see Communication Plan on page )


Remedial Training

  • When is Remedial Training Required

Following Repeated failed tests

    • Example: AIS allows each learner up to three (3) attempts to complete a post test. At that point, the learner is blocked from an additional attempts

    • Each Organization will need to have a contact person who will review the reason for the failed attempts and provide the required support to the learner

    • The Help account holder will be able to allow additional attempts

Following Poor Audit Results

    • Examples:

      • Survey indicated a significant change assessment was not completed timely or items were incorrectly coded

      • State CMI/RUG audit indicated that items coded on the MDS failed to meet the standard set by that state. An example would be coding Respiratory Therapy on the MDS without verification that the nurse documenting the services has been trained. AIS Respiratory Therapy module can be the directed education component followed by a competency checklist for each nurse in the facility as part of their orientation. In most states, this fulfills that requirement.

  • What will the process be for providing remedial training following repeated failed tests (whether during initial roll-out or during refresher training)?

Assess barriers to successful completion

    • Test Anxiety

    • Time Constraints

    • Study Time: Assess study time in the eLearning module

Provide a mentor to review missed questions and provide coaching

  • What will the process be for providing remedial training following poor audit results?

Identifying the sections or modules that correspond to the audit issues: MDS Items, Submission or Schedule requirements, PPS Schedule, ADL coding etc.

Schedule completion requirements and time allotment

    • Typically only require Post Test and time allotment will be dependent on when a plan of correction needs to be completed

    • For ongoing management as in the example noted above, this could be completed for all current nursing staff and provided during orientation for new hire nursing that will be administering respiratory therapy treatments.

Follow up and Communication of the requirements

    • Ensure successful studying and post-test completion – Use available Reports in AIS Central (available for all staff with Educator accounts)

    • Who needs to be notified of requirements and completion

    • Do the reports need to be printed and put in a location (example: Survey book, Employee file)

  • Who will monitor remedial training and be allowed to reset the test evaluations for repeat testing?

Educator account access will be needed to:

    • Ensure successful completion of the requirement

    • Review the missed questions

    • Identify the time in the E Learning module

Help Account access (or availability for the Educator or Manager to have this task completed)

    • Can reset the test to allow additional takes


Refresher Training

  • How often are learners required to take refresher training

AIS updates our course content when CMS has either an RAI or a PPS change that significantly impacts the course content

    • PPS Final Rule: July

    • RAI Manual Update: October

    • Clarifications and interim updates: Often in April and throughout the year

Each year (on or around December 1), AIS reviews all of the questions currently in our system and refreshes or replaces questions and answers as needed. This is to ensure our information is relevant to current issues, clarifications, and updates. At that time, we release a new version of our product (Version 14 will be released on or around December 1, 2014). All of the Reports, Dashboard, and Curriculums will be updated to reflect the current version. Please note that Organizations still have the ability to view and download previous version information.

Frequency of Refresher Training for Organizations

    • Annual

    • Every 2 years

    • May vary depending on new information released and Organization requirements

  Note: This is customizable and will be reviewed each year starting in October.

  • Who must take the refresher training? Example of Learning Matrix in Appendix

  • What is the timeline for completion? Example of Schedule and Training Time in Appendix

 

New Hires/Position Changes

  • How will the AIS Courseware training be integrated into the orientation process?

Orientation Pathway for each role

Decision on when to register staff for AIS based on the schedule determined

How will the training in AIS navigation and requirements be completed

    • Educator or Mentor use AIS guides

    • Web Based Training Series

    • One on one Training

  • Will staff be allowed to complete MDS assessments and enter in the software before successfully completing the modules and tests?

  • What is the timeline for completion? Example of Schedule and Training Time in Appendix

Examples:

    • 90 Day schedule – all RAI related courseware completed in first 60 days

    • 30 Day schedule – could be completed with organization orientation

    • 5 Day schedule – could be completed after organization initial orientation prior to completing MDS assessments. Requires 6-8 hours of AIS focus per day during this 5 day period

 

Completion and Compliance Monitoring

  • Tests / Evaluations

Pre-Test: Taken once. Provides a baseline for both the Learner determining areas of focus and for the Educator (Organization) to review the baseline for the overall organization

Post-Tests:

    • Post-tests can be taken up to three times before the learner is “locked out” of that post-test.

    • The test must be then be re-set by the Help Desk Account.

    • What is the next step if a learner fails the last allowed retake?

      • How will the mentoring take place (see …. For details)

      • Who is responsible for allowing additional takes

    • Post-Tests can be used to determine successful completion of required courses.

    • A component of facility/organization compliance program for RAI/MDS and Medicare education

      • Are the learners who complete or document for MDS items and schedule assessments qualified

      • Does your staff understand the basic components of the Medicare PPS System and the requirements to complete PPS assessments

Survey

    • Surveys are required to obtain CE’s

    • Survey only needs to be taken once

    • Questions are related to appropriateness and ease of use of modules for each learner and are required by our licensing agencies

 

  • Compliance

It all starts with compliance to the courses outlined for each role in your organization. Care needs to be taken to ensure courses are assigned based on need within the organization and time allowed to complete training. Additional reports will only be beneficial if Learners have completed the assigned courses.

Who is responsible for monitoring course completion

How is completion monitored?

    • Dashboard View: In the Evaluation Performance Tab there are views that will provide an overall look at compliance to Curriculum

    • Reports: R207: Curriculum - Status of Required Items. This report can be downloaded as an Excel File

    • Integration with Organization’s LMS (Learning Management System): some organizations have an integration with AIS and their LMS. Typically this integration will allow reports on test completion and compliance to a schedule. Will still want to use AIS Central to determine scores and areas of improvement

How frequently will monitoring take place?

    • During the initial phase of the rollout, it will be helpful to review compliance weekly utilizing the reports. This will allow the project leads to identify issues early in the process.

    • Some issues identified might be:

      • All staff may not know their login and password

      • Staff may not know the schedule – if Curriculums have been set up, the Learners can go to “My Evaluations” tab from the AIS Home Page to see the schedule for their role

      • “Pop Up Blocker” feature may still be activated on a Learner’s computer preventing them from accessing the eLearning module

      • Learners may not feel they have time to complete the required courseware

Who will be provided with the monitoring information?

    • Reports can be sorted by Organization/Region/Location

    • Operations Teams may want this information to ensure compliance for their area of responsibility

    • Clinical Consulting Team may want this information to ensure all staff have taken the required courses. Once this has been confirmed, the data in the other reports can be used to identify knowledge gaps, super users, etc.

  • Will your organization use the Curriculum Management functionality provided with the AIS Courseware? 
    Note: Although this is not mandatory, we strongly recommend using Curriculum Management because Curriculum Management makes monitoring much simpler and easier. Please see Appendix C for details of setting up and using Curriculum Management.

  • Will there be a compliance component or policy related to course completion.

Policy vs Procedure or Plan

This consideration needs to be made related to all education within your organization.

If a Policy – what are the ramifications if a Learner does not complete the required courseware

Recommend that AIS courseware be a component of your Education Plan and after the initial roll out, should be part of Learner Orientation Pathway both upon hire and annually as identified


Communication Plan

A solid communication plan must be developed prior to roll-out.

  • Managers must communicate to the learners a clearly defined education process, including:

The learner’s specific schedule, with start dates and timelines

The time allotted to each module and test

The plan for taking the pre-tests and post-tests, and the process if post-tests are not passed. In addition, does the plan include survey completion to ensure CEs for each Learner or will this be an optional feature

  • The organization must communicate to the managers how much time will be required each week to complete the course content, the methodology for monitoring and reporting compliance, and the benefit of the education to the managers and the organization.

See Appendix… for details on course timeline

  • The organization must communicate to the identified educators/mentors:

Their own personal education process

The education process for their assigned learners

The same communication that the managers receive

  • AIS recommends scheduling regular calls during roll-out to follow up on any issues (for example, issues with connectivity, timeline, or compliance), attended by the educators/mentors.

Recommend downloading R207: Curriculum - Status of Required Items. For the week prior to the call. If assistance is needed with this report, contact Director of Clinical Education or AIS Support

Before the call, the educators/mentors communicate with their assigned field staff to identify issues to bring to the call.

Following the call, if the issues require support from AIS, they are communicated to the AIS representative or support team, and the responses are communicated to the educators/mentors, who pass it on to their field staff.

Calls should be weekly for at least the first two or three weeks of the field roll-out. Once there are no issues being brought to the meeting, the frequency can be reduced to once every two weeks until roll-out is complete.

 

Communication plan decision points include:

  • Who is responsible for developing the communication plan?

  • Who is responsible for communicating with the managers and educators/mentors?

  • Who is responsible for setting up the weekly calls and ensuring the issues and responses are communicated?


Education Policy

Will there be a formal, approved education policy, or will there be a guideline for implementation?

This decision will be different for each organization, depending on how the education process is integrated. The content of the policy or guideline will be based upon the decisions made by the organization for the above decision points.