MDP Foundational Course

January 27 – March 10, 2025 (6 weeks)

CE/CME Credit Available: Interprofessional, Nurse, Physician, Social Work, and Certificate of Participation for Non-physician Healthcare Professionals

Module Description

Participants will watch pre-recorded content videos, complete reading materials, and engage in live online discussions once a week for 90 minutes.

Please note that the number of credits and live class time are subject to change.

Module Objectives

After completing this module, participants will be able to:

• Describe a values-based approach to management and leadership
• Determine the hospice manager’s role in compliance and accountability
• Assess individual leadership styles and adaptability
• Discuss the relationship between your style as a manager and problem solving and outcomes
• Define, explain, and identify keys to the effective use of behavioral interviewing, feedback, coaching and performance appraisal

Module Structure

The module will be instructor-facilitated and is conducted online over six weeks. During this time, you will read online articles, watch videos, complete assignments, develop solutions to case studies, participate in a weekly live online session. You can expect to spend 2-4 hours per week on these activities. Participants will determine their own schedules for completing the on-demand course work, which is a perfect arrangement for busy hospice managers. However, completion of the module requires that you complete all prerecorded content, participate in weekly assignments and in the weekly live discussion.

Live Class: course dates will be released closer to the start of the course.

Orientation – January 27

Week 1: Values-Based Hospice Leadership! – February 3

Week 2: Problem Solving and Decision Making – February 10

Week 3: Applying the Situational Leadership Model – February 24

Week 4: Interviewing, Coaching, Feedback, and Evaluation Skills – March 3

Week 5: Regulations and Standards for Hospice Managers – March 10

Faculty

N. Joel Fry, MSW, LISW (main instructor)

Joel Fry, MSW, LISW received his Bachelor of Arts from Simpson College and his Master of Social Work and Aging Studies Certificate from the University of Iowa School of Social Work in Iowa City. While at the University, he was awarded the American Cancer Society Training Grant in Clinical Oncology, where he began his therapy work with cancer patients.

Joel was a social worker with Hospice of Central Iowa in West Des Moines, Iowa from June of 1999 until October 2001. He provided a wide range of services to patients and families, including grief and loss counseling and emotional and spiritual support at the end of life. In October of 2001, Joel was named the Metro Team Director for Hospice of Central Iowa and joined the leadership team. As the director, he supervised nearly 30 clinicians and provided leadership for a team with an average daily census of nearly 100 patients. Joel served as the Metro Team Director until May 2006.  Taking his compassion for the highest quality end-of-life care, Joel joined Weatherbee Resources April of 2006.  Also, in 2006,  Joel joined the National Hospice and Palliative Care Association’s team of faculty for their Manager Development Program.  He teaches this program throughout the United States.

In November 2005 Joel and his wife Heather founded Team Restoration Ministries. He is the president of Team Restoration Ministries, a ministry designed to strengthen marriages in Central and Southern Iowa. Team Restoration Ministries partners with local churches to provide therapy services, conferences, and teaching on marriage and family-related topics.

Joel teaches and lectures throughout the United States on a variety of end-of-life and marriage topics. Joel has served as part-time faculty at Simpson College, where he taught a variety of social science courses. He has also served as adjunct faculty at The University of Iowa School of Social Work, where he taught end-of-life curriculum to graduate students.

Joel was first elected to the Iowa House of Representative in 2010 and continues to serve the state of Iowa as a State Representative. He has served as Vice Chair of the Resource Committee, assistant majority leader, House Majority Whip, chairman of the Human Resources Committee, and is currently chair of the Health and Human Services Budget. He is a member of the Education Committee, Public Safety Committee, Human Resources Committee, Health and Human Services Budget Subcommittee, and the Appropriations Committee. He has worked extensively on mental health redesign and is seen in his caucus as a resource on numerous health and human service-related issues. He is blessed to represent the people from the great state of Iowa and most specifically those from south-central Iowa.

Joel married his college sweetheart in 2000, and together they have 9 children.

Module Requirements

Please note: For successful completion of the module, all participants must complete all required videos and reading, all live online classes, and complete the course evaluation. A Certificate of Course Completion towards the Level I designation of the Hospice Manager Development Program will then be awarded, along with CE/CME credit for interprofessionals, nurses, physicians, and healthcare professionals who have requested this in advance. If you have any questions, please contact the course faculty for clarification.

Accreditation Statement

In support of improving patient care, the National Alliance for Care at Home (Alliance) is jointly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), to provide continuing education for the healthcare team.

Available Credit

• 14 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)^TM
• 14 Interprofessional Continuing Education credits
• 14 Nurse Contact Hours
• 14 Social Work credits

Joint Accreditation IPCE Credit Statement

This activity was planned by and for the healthcare team, and learners will receive 14 Interprofessional Continuing Education (IPCE) credits for learning and change.

CNE Credit Designation Statement
The Alliance designates this other/blended learning activity for 14 nursing contact hour(s). Nurses should claim only the contact hours commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

CME Credit Designation Statement
The Alliance designates this other/blended learning activity for 14 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

Certificate of Participation for Non-physician Healthcare Professionals: For participants* whose disciplines are other those above may request a Certificate of Participation for Non-physician Healthcare Professionals to submit to your accrediting bodies/licensing boards for continuing education credit. This certificate will indicate this activity was certified for AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)^TM. It is the responsibility of participants to submit the certificates to their accrediting bodies/licensing boards for approval. Unfortunately, the Alliance cannot guarantee its acceptance. To receive this certificate, you must complete all CE/CME requirements and indicate your desire to receive this certificate on the evaluation form. 

ACE Approval Statement:
As a Jointly Accredited Organization, the Alliance is approved to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Organizations, not individual courses, are approved under this program. Regulatory boards are the final authority on courses accepted for continuing education credit. Social workers participating in this course will receive 14 general continuing education credits. 

Module Fees

The module fee is $599 for members and $699 for non-members. Groups of more than 2 organizational members pay $545 per person.

Late Registration Information

Please note: Due to administrative constraints, if you register after the course begins, there is a late fee of $35.

Registration Cancellation Policy

All cancellation requests must be submitted in writing to education@nhpco.org. A $50 processing fee will apply to all cancellations. Cancellations made on the day the module starts or afterward are not eligible for a refund.