Trustee Education Certification Program
Are you prepared to lead?
In 2007, the Nebraska Hospital Association Research and Educational Foundation (NHAREF) developed a hospital governance education certification process, the “Hospital Trustee Community Accountability Education Certification Program,” known simply as Trustee Education Certification Program. Why should you become certified? The NHAREF has developed this special, voluntary trustee education certification to make a good board member great, and a committed board member an exceptional asset. This education certification is a process of verifying an individual trustee’s initiative to improve personal health care knowledge, leadership effectiveness and compliance with a variety of governance best practices. Certification is a viable way of assuring various stakeholders such as community members, lawmakers, regulators, physicians, employees and other businesses that Nebraska’s hospitals hold themselves to high standards and are accountable for their governing performance. Certification demonstrates that Nebraska hospitals:
- Understand and embrace the need for governance accountability.
- Govern according to a standard of excellence.
- Are willing to formally certify their adherence to governance best practices.
- Are committed to care management and coordination of resources.
- Embrace community accountability and transparency.
- Structure their community benefit and outreach programs to meet identified community needs.
- Utilize data from the NHIS (Nebraska Health Information System) to identify and address areas of need especially for the uninsured and underinsured.
- Utilize performance data to identify opportunities for improvement, and monitor progress to improve quality and safety.
- Integrate local health efforts with state programs.
This certification process has been designed for hospital trustees as part of a larger effort to hold Nebraska hospitals to a higher standard of accountability. By its use, participating hospitals are demonstrating a commitment to improving performance of their boards, encouraging trustees to pursue ongoing education and educating trustees about their responsibility in serving their community. It also provides trustees with an opportunity to move beyond the basics of governance to a forward-thinking, strategic understanding of the health care environment and how to move their hospital’s mission and vision to a new level.
