Open Forum

Hello ambulatory friends! I am rather new to my role as ambulatory educator, and I am having trouble finding resources that provide recommendations for annual competencies. The clinics I primarily provide education for are specialty clinics – OB/GYN, URO/GYN, Urology, Orthopedics, Pain Management, Dermatology, Breast, Plastics, GI Lab, GI Clinic, ENT, and Audiology. Do you know if there are any governing bodies that provide recommendations for annual staff education? I have found that Joint Commission provides primarily in-hospital education recommendations, but have not had much luck finding any recommendations for ambulatory. Any feedback or recommendations you can provide are much appreciated. Thank you!

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Tyler Fredrick, BSN, RN
Clinical Nurse Educator
University Health
Kansas City, MO
(816) 404-4198
tyler.fredrick@uhkc.org
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Hi Tyler, 

We re-vamped annual competencies at our ambulatory care clinic. I would suggest first starting with Donna Wrights Ultimate Guide to Competency Assessment in Heath Care. Each year we focus on 5-6 annual competencies for both MAs and RNs. Some of what we have included in the past were pediatric vital signs (along with head circumference, weight, etc.), adult vital signs (focusing specifically on blood pressure), CLIA waived testing (we do this yearly to comply with regulations), Problematic medications that RNs encounter in the outpatient clinic (We review administration steps, common side effects, steps taken in each visits, etc.), reviewing vaccine administration sites (especially deltoid and finding the correct landmarks). The Donna Weight Model is amazing and lays the groundwork for starting annual competencies. Hope this helps! I attached a link to the book here: https://www.wob.com/en-us/books/donna-wright/ultimate-guide-to-competency-assessment-in-health-care/9781886624207/CIN1886624208G?cq_src=google_ads&cq_cmp=18951850512&cq_con=&cq_med=pla&cq_plac=&cq_net=x&gad_source=1&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIzr7rvtyTggMVnERHAR2rlQ4gEAQYAiABEgLy9vD_BwE 

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Serena Tavares BSN, RN
Clinical Nurse Educator
Thundermist Health Center
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The ANPD website contains a clinical education matrix showing what is required by various regulatory bodies. It has a tab for ambulatory care. I believe AAACN partners with ANPD to keep that section updated each year, so it is a really good resource. 

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Elizabeth Fritz PhD RN NPDA-BC NPD-BC
RN Program Manager, Clinical Education
SSM Health
Watertown WI
(608)260-6467
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