Learning & Development Opportunities

Online opportunities for BC healthcare staff are available to develop healthcare-specific occupational health and safety knowledge and skills. The Online Learning Centre houses a variety of healthcare-specific courses free-of-charge to anyone working in BC healthcare.

Registering for the Online Learning Centre

To access the courses below, you must register. Register Now.

Please note that if you have an account for OHS Connect, your same username and password will also allow you access to the Online Learning Centre.

Course Descriptions

The following online courses and modules are available for registration.

Assessing and Controlling Personal Risk (Respiratory Infections)
This module will give you the information to define and conduct a Point of Care Risk Assessment for Respiratory Infections, identify the symptoms of respiratory infections that will impact your PCRA, identify the routes of transmission for respiratory infections and describe how your organization responds to the risk of exposure to respiratory infections.

Exposure Control Planning for Respiratory Infections
This module will give you the information to define an Exposure Control Plan (ECP), identify the goals and outcomes of creating an Exposure Control Plan and demonstrate understanding of the eight elements of an Exposure Control Plan.

Infection Control
This online learning course is designed to provide healthcare workers with an understanding of Infection Control Basics and is appropriate for workers in all types of care facilities. Participants can expect to understand the importance of infection control, standard infection control practices, proper waste handling and disposal, various types of isolation and when they should be applied, and the importance of using personal protective barriers such as masks and gloves.

Biohazards Level 1
The goal of this module is to review the knowledge and skills required to prevent or minimize workplace exposure to biohazardous materials in a health care environment and to minimize potential health outcomes in the event of an exposure.

Biohazards Level 2
The goal of this module is to review the knowledge and skills required to prevent or minimize workplace exposure to biohazardous materials in a health care environment, and to minimize potential health outcomes in the event of an exposure.

WHMIS
This animated, interactive, web-based course is designed to provide employees, supervisors, and employers with an understanding of the WHMIS core elements that apply to all workplaces where hazardous materials are used. Learn the goals of WHMIS, how to read and understand WHMIS labels, hazard class symbols and MSDS’s, and responsibilities with respect to hazardous products in the workplace.

WHMIS Challenge
Perfect for those who have previously taken WHMIS and are already familiar with WHMIS concepts, the WHMIS Challenge Course offers you the option to challenge the exam in order to receive your certificate. You can also review the WHMIS course if you need to brush up on specific areas of knowledge.

OH&S for New and Young Worker
Especially created with new or young workers in mind, this online course will cover the basics of what a new worker needs to know such as health and safety responsibilities of employees and employers, common workplace hazards and strategies to control or mitigate them, and what to do when ill or injured at work. Workers will also learn the importance of asking questions when they are unclear, and of bringing a list of questions to their workplace.

Radiation Safety Basics
The goal of this course is to introduce key information about possible sources of radiation in a health care environment and to identify ways healthcare workers can protect themselves from unnecessary exposure. The course explains the difference between external and internal radiation hazards, identifies the basic methods to reduce exposure to radiation, outlines the relevant regulatory agencies legislation and effective dose limits, and lists radiation emergency procedures for the workplace.

Radiation Safety for Nursing Staff
This module provides basic information about radiation procedures and protections to minimize any risks for nursing staff. Topics covered include sources of exposure, effects of exposure, protection procedures and dose limits.

Radiation Fluoroscopy
This course is designed as an introductory course to be supplemented by hands-on practical training or as a refresher for those who are already doing fluoroscopy. In this 7 part course, the following topics are reviewed: radiation fundamentals, fluoroscopy equipment, patient dosing calculations and methods, patient counselling and post-procedure follow-up, radiation safety regulations, and operator and staff doses.

Radiation Safety for Nuclear Medicine Technologists
This course is designed to refresh the knowledge of radiation safety for Nuclear Medicine Technologists (NMTs). Participants will learn the regulatory limits of occupational exposure and the need to practice ALARA. The stochastic, deterministic and biological effects of radiation exposure will be reviewed. Radiation safety principles and practices are outlined, and the importance of room classifications, contamination controls and thyroid bioassays are clarified.

PHSA Fire Safety
This is the Provincial Health Services Authority (PHSA) Fire Safety Course for ALL staff at agencies other than BCHMAS, Floor Wardens and staff at leased sites.

Violence Prevention Modules

• Module 1: Overview: The goal of this module is to help healthcare workers: identify the different types of violence that may be encountered in the workplace; understand the impacts of violence on workers and the principles healthcare employers are guided by to reduce those impacts; learn about worker and employer responsibilities with respect to violence in the workplace; and learn about violence alert systems.
• Module 2: Recognizing and Responding to Risk: The goal of this module is to assist healthcare workers learn about how to identify risk factors and stressors for violence, and what to do when faced with threats to safety. This module will also explain the appropriate responses to verbal and physical violence, and how to recognize signs of and respond to tension reduction in patients.
• Module 3: Interventions in Acute Care:
The goal of this module is to help healthcare workers in the acute care setting identify patient and environmental risk factors, identify ways of interacting with patients that may increase or decrease patient stress, and choose strategies to minimize and/or eliminate these risks and stressors.
• Module 3: Interventions in Residential Care:
The goal of this module is to help healthcare workers learn: how to identify resident and environmental risk factors in the residential care setting; ways of interacting with residents that may decrease resident stress; and the appropriate strategies to minimize and/or eliminate these risks and stressors.
• Module 3: Interventions in Community Care:
The goal of this module is to help healthcare workers learn: how to identify client and environmental risk factors in the community care setting; ways of interacting with clients that may decrease client stress; and the appropriate strategies to minimize and/or eliminate these risks and stressors.
• Module 4: Communication Basics:
The goal of this module is to help healthcare workers understand the benefits of becoming better communicators, for both patients and staff, and the importance of non-verbal communication. This module will also explain how to recognize the effect of body language on patients and be aware of how patients’ body language may give advance warning of an angry or violent reaction.
• Module 5: De-escalation:
The goal of this module is to help healthcare workers learn: de-escalation skills to lessen someone’s anger; understand the guidelines to help decide when to use and when not to use de-escalation techniques; and tips for how to respond to cognitively impaired people.
• Module 6: Responding to Physical Violence:
The goal of this module is to help healthcare workers learn: preventive strategies for self-protection from physical violence; how to recognize cues when patient behaviour may be escalating; and what to do if you experience or witness a violent incident. This module will also explain why formal and/or informal team responses are preferred, what a Code White team is and how it functions.
• Module 7: Post-Incident Response:
The goal of this module is to help healthcare workers learn about worker and manager responsibilities following an incident. This module will also explain: why proper and timely documentation is important; the range of common physical and/or emotional reactions to violent incidents; what support is available; and who to approach to get that support.
• Module 8: Behavioural Care Planning for Violence Prevention: The goal of this module is to inform direct care healthcare workers how, when and why to conduct a patient violence risk assessment (PVRA), provide ways in which identified risks for violence can be communicated, offer strategies for developing interventions for behaviours that require caution and those that indicate high risk, and discuss the role and importance of accurate charting.

Questions?

Contact the Online Learning Centre at: 1-877-328-7810, or , by email at learn@ohsah.bc.ca.