With healthcare ranking number two among occupations with the fastest wage/salary growth, healthcare organizations education and training will help you and your business in several ways. Appropriate education/training for you and your professional staff will help solidify your reputation and that of your business. It will enable you/your staff to take on more and varied responsibilities, increasing the demand for your services and helping to improve your bottom line. Additionally, professional development will help prepare you for career advancement.

Existing healthcare professionals will quickly discover that a search for continuing education and certification programs should begin with medical associations and healthcare associations. Finding the American medical associations or American health associations related to your specialty will get you on the fast track for continuing professional development. This guide addresses continuing education and training opportunities for three types of healthcare professionals:

1. A professional health or medical organization that provides training/education/certification opportunities for medical/healthcare managers.

2. A medical or healthcare organization providing continued professional development for doctors and nurses.

3. Health and medical associations offering professional development/certification opportunities for counselors.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Find health associations with education/training opportunities for healthcare managers

Medical or healthcare managers and administrators, often responsible for large numbers of employees and multi-million dollar facilities with very expensive equipment, must pursue continued professional development to successfully carry out their duties and maintain proper credentials.

I recommend: The American College of Healthcare Executives offers the chance to become board certified in healthcare management as an ACHE Fellow. Click on the "Education" link near the top of the page to learn about additional education offerings like the Congress on Healthcare Leadership, webinars, online seminars and self-study courses. Visit the American College of Health Care Administrators to learn more about education programs, certification and meetings or events that will help your professional development. Earn certification as a Registered Health Information Administrator through the American Health Information Management Association. The AHIMA website also contains lots of other valuable information about schools and professional development opportunities like audio seminars/webinars, distance education, conventions, its fellowship program and meetings.

Go to a trusted American medical organization for doctor/nurse professional development

Improve your credentials, knowledge and skills through continuing education opportunities offered for physicians and nurses through medical association websites.

I recommend: Check out the requirements for earning the Physician's Recognition Award from the American Medical Association. The AMA uses the award to recognize physicians committed to continuing medical education. While at the AMA website, look through the accredited CME provider resources, research upcoming events and keep up with the Continuing Physician Professional Development Reports. Nurses should search for professional associations that deal with their specialty, like the National Association of Orthopaedic Nurses, for continuing education programs.

Locate medical and health associations that provide education/training for counselors

No matter what your specialty is, visit the websites of mental health associations, public health associations and other professional associations that offer educational programs for counselors.

I recommend: Spend some time at the Center for Credentialing and Education website, a corporate affiliate of the National Board for Certified Counselors. If you counsel patients with addictions, pursue the three levels of certification through the National Association for Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Counselors. Also review the educational courses and events available by clicking on the "Education" link at the top of the page.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  While certification programs from medical associations and healthcare associations can provide valuable professional development education and credentials, also obtain the proper licenses that demonstrate to your patients, peers and others you've accomplished all the necessary education, training and other professional development required by your state's licensing authority.

If you own a company in the healthcare industry, you would do well to partner with health associations to strengthen your business expertise and credibility. Industry organizations bring together professionals with similar goals and challenges. Members of industry organizations come from across company divisions, but all share the same objective of expanding their knowledge.

Becoming a member of the right organization opens the door to a wealth of expertise. You will be exposed to many networking opportunities, information and resources. Additionally, American health associations may also provide invaluable services that include new products, education opportunities and industry support. When looking for membership with a healthcare organization, remember the following:

1. Make sure the American medical organization you're interested in is credible. Check BBB or other industry accreditations.

2. Many organizations don’t stipulate membership for certification.

3. Most organizations charge fees for memberships, so make sure you’re getting your money’s worth before you pay.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Become a member of an accredited organization of healthcare

Although many organizations offer information, tools and resources to non-members, you can benefit substantially from becoming a member. Membership opens the door to additional service, product and representation. Register as a business rather than as just an individual, if possible, so your employees can benefit from the membership.

I recommend: Membership benefits for AcademyHealth include discounts, subscriptions and organizational visibility. The American Association of Healthcare Administrative Management's membership benefits include discounts on products, services and educational programs.

Take advantage of training opportunities provided by medical associations

Progress stops for no one, and you need to advance as a professional by keeping your industry skills sharp and current. Take advantage of educational programs and tools to assist you and your employees in knowledge development and career advancement. Many organizations offer information on upcoming seminars, conferences, business development courses and other industry-related programs, in addition to industry certifications.

I recommend: The American College of Healthcare Executives provides webinars, online seminars and self-study courses as part of its educational offerings. The National Association of Healthcare Access Management's educational opportunities also has web seminars, in addition to instructional materials for sale.

Opt for healthcare associations that offer awards programs

Winning awards from accredited organizations reflects positively on a business. Usually members have to be nominated for awards, but each organization has various requirements and expectations. You may have to be a member to enroll.

I recommend: The American College of Healthcare Administrators sponsors a number of awards, recognitions and scholarships, including distinguished the administrator award and the new administrator award. The National Association for Healthcare Quality awards include the Claire Glover Award, the Distinguished Member Award and the Luc R. Pelletier Healthcare Quality Award.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  If you're considering a medical services organization for its online resources, look for one with a current forum where you can discuss issues with industry experts in real time.

When working with health-care organizations, there are many terms that can be confusing. To make sure you join health-care organizations that will best serve your business, you must learn the language. Learn the difference between accreditation and board certified and understand the differences between organizations that deal with informational management and long-term care. It is also important to understand the significance of memberships and medical journals to various health-care organizations.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Accreditation

Accreditation describes a health-care organization that has been reviewed by outside sources and been found to meet certain standards to become a legitimate and appropriate health-care organization. Accreditation is used to assert status and usually lasts a limited amount of time before an organization must undergo re-accreditation procedures.

I recommend: Success Factors explains what health-care organizations must do to get accreditation and what it means.

Board-certified

Board-certified means that a health-care professional has gone above the minimum requirement by becoming a specialist in his or her field. There are organizations that are designed to help health-care workers become board-certified.

I recommend: The American Board of Medical Specialties is an organization that helps health-care professionals get board-certified.

Membership guidelines

Membership guidelines and the benefits of membership in different health-care organizations vary according to the organization.

I recommend: AAHAM, which stands for the American Association of Healthcare Administrative Management, explains the costs and benefits of membership.

Long-term care organizations

Long-term care organizations are associations that work specifically with administrators in the long-term care field of health care to make sure they are licensed properly, have all the credentials they need and remain regulated.

I recommend: NAB, which is the National Association of Long- Term Care Administrator Board, describes what a long-term care organization is and how it can help long-term care administrators get licensed and accredited. It also explains how it works to regulate administrators in long-term care facilities.

Health-information management

Health-information management describes the way in which important health-care information about clients is processed, and kept confidential and accurate.

I recommend: The American Health Information Management Association explains what health-information management is and how it is set up to help you.

Medical journal

A medical journal is a publication in which the articles are written by people in the medical profession to exchange valuable information about their areas of expertise.

I recommend: The American Cancer Society provides a medical journal called "CA A Career Journal for Clinicians." Check it out to learn how medical journals are used to exchange valuable information among professionals.