Wolters Kluwer Health Collaborates with Joint Commission Resources to Develop eCourses for Nurses

AMBLER, Pa., July 17, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Wolters Kluwer Health, a leading global provider of information and point-of-care solutions for the healthcare industry, announced today that it has signed an agreement with Joint Commission Resources (JCR), official publisher and educator of The Joint Commission, to develop online professional development courses for nurses in hospitals and other health institutions.  These eCourses will be included in Lippincott's Professional Development Programs catalog for sale to providers.

The initial development effort calls for Wolters Kluwer Health to develop and provide 50 courses, including 10 on patient safety, 10 on compliance, and 30 supporting disease-specific care certification in Heart Failure and Stroke.  As the official publisher of The Joint Commission, JCR will review and verify the quality of the courses.  The courses will be available to all providers and institutions by working with their Lippincott's Nursing Solutions representative to select the appropriate programs from the course catalog.

"Knowing that The Joint Commission and JCR experts have reviewed these courses to verify that they meet accreditation and certification requirements will help hospitals with compliance," said Judy McCann, Chief Nurse, Professional & Education, Wolters Kluwer Health.  "We are proud to merge Lippincott's clinical expertise with JCR's dedication to patient safety and patient care improvement." 

The courses will be packaged into four programs within the library:  Patient Safety, Compliance, Disease-specific Certification for Heart Failure, and Disease-specific Certification for Stroke.  Each will enable nurses to learn what they need to provide excellent patient care.

"Nurses are on the front lines making sure that their organizations comply with standards and they, more than anyone, appreciate the integrity of the Lippincott brand," said Cathy Hinckley, Executive Director, Publications and Education, Joint Commission Resources.  "These co-developed courses help clinicians understand and make the connection between excellent clinical care and The Joint Commission's accreditation and certification requirements."

"This collaboration allows us to provide two critical benefits for educating the clinician," said Jay Abramovitz, Director of Lippincott's Nursing Solutions Product Development, Professional & Education, Wolters Kluwer Health.  "These courses are developed to help nurses learn the latest evidence-based practice guidelines and at the same time meet The Joint Commission requirements."

Lippincott's Professional Development Programs consist of evidence-based online courses organized into programs by key nursing specialties and topic areas.  Each course is designed to optimize nurses' clinical performance.  In addition, nurses can improve their management and leadership skills with goals that include continuous improvement of patient outcomes and ongoing evaluation of nursing competence.  Most include case studies and/or tutorial modules delivered in easy-to-learn, interactive formats. 

In addition to institutional purchase, the courses will be included with the courses currently for sale on www.lww.com.  In total, almost 300 courses will be available for direct purchase within the Lippincott's Professional Development catalog.  These courses cover a variety of specialty areas including critical care, cardiovascular care, obstetrics, neurology, pediatrics, behavioral health, and a wide variety of compliance, patient safety, professional development and disease state issues.

Lippincott's Nursing Solutions is a comprehensive suite of electronic solutions in use in more than 1,500 healthcare facilities.  Provider institutions purchase these products to support evidence-based practice, standardize care, enhance productivity, save time, and streamline clinical workflows.  Educational institutions use them to help students learn, think critically and enhance skills.  Key products under its umbrella include Lippincott's Nursing Advisor; Lippincott's Professional Development Programs; and Lippincott's Nursing Procedures and Skills. 

Starting this fall, the new co-developed courses will be available by subscription to hospitals and other healthcare facilities.  To learn more or to purchase, visit LippincottSolutions.com/JCR.

About Joint Commission Resources
Joint Commission Resources (JCR), a not-for-profit affiliate of The Joint Commission, is the official publisher and educator of The Joint Commission. JCR is an expert resource for health care organizations, providing consulting services, educational services and publications to assist in improving quality and safety and to help in meeting the accreditation standards of The Joint Commission. JCR provides consulting services independently from The Joint Commission and in a fully confidential manner. Please visit www.jcrinc.com for more information.  

About Wolters Kluwer Health
Wolters Kluwer Health is a leading global provider of information, business intelligence and point-of-care solutions for the healthcare industry. Serving more than 150 countries and territories worldwide, Wolters Kluwer Health's customers include professionals, institutions and students in medicine, nursing, allied health and pharmacy. Major brands include Health Language^®, Lexicomp^®, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Medicom^®, Medknow, Ovid^®, Pharmacy OneSource^®, ProVation^® Medical and UpToDate^®.

Wolters Kluwer Health is part of Wolters Kluwer, a market-leading global information services company. Wolters Kluwer had 2012 annual revenues of €3.6 billion ($4.6 billion), employs approximately 19,000 people worldwide, and maintains operations in over 40 countries across Europe, North America, Asia Pacific, and Latin America. Follow our official Twitter handle: @WKHealth.

SOURCE Wolters Kluwer Health