New Training Available: Safeguarding Healthcare: Preparing for Public Safety Power Shutoffs (PSPS) & Other Power Outages

 

To: Administrators, Directors and Staff From: Melanie Roth, Emergency Preparedness Specialist, Health Facilities & Emergency Medical Services Division New Training Available: Safeguarding Healthcare: Preparing for Public Safety Power Shutoffs (PSPS) & Other Power Outages  A new class, “Safeguarding Healthcare: Preparing for Public Safety Power Shutoffs (PSPS) & Other Power Outages" is now live on COTrain. (You can log in or create an account.) The course I.D. # is 1139191. We encourage you to share this class with your staff. Power grid failures can stem from a wide variety of circumstances, and one of them is a Public Safety Power Shutoff, implemented to prevent electrical equipment from sparking fast-spreading, catastrophic wildfires during extreme weather. In this course, you will explore and understand what Public Safety Power Shutoffs (PSPS) and other outage events are, why they happen, and how to prepare your healthcare environment to keep your residents, patients, and clients safe. You’ll gain practical tools for emergency planning, learn how to protect those who depend on electricity for medical care, and how to access and use critical information during power outages. Check out all of our self-guided training in our Provider Training Catalog. If you have any questions, please contact Melanie.Roth-Lawson@state.co.us

Register now for online webinar: Tuesday, June 9, 11:00 AM - 12:30 PM Wildfire & Smoke Readiness in Long-Term Care Facility and Home Health Settings: Actionable Strategies for Protecting Health during Wildfire Smoke Events

 

To: Administrators, Directors and Staff From: Melanie Roth, Emergency Response Coordinator, Health Facilities & Emergency Medical Services Division Re: Register Now for CDPHE “Wildfire & Smoke Readiness in Long-Term Care Facility and Home Health Settings: Actionable Strategies for Protecting Individuals’ Health During Wildfire Smoke Events” Based on forecasts and early 2026 data, Colorado is facing an exceptionally dangerous wildfire season, largely driven by severe drought and record-low snowpack. State officials warned in late April 2026 that the state is facing a challenging fire year with risks elevated across the Western Slope and the Front Range.   Join us on Tuesday, June 9, from 11:00 am-12:30 pm for a free, live webinar on the impacts and implications of wildfires and smoke in Colorado and steps you can take to prepare and respond to these events to protect your clients, residents and patients: Potential for danger from wildfires and smoke   Components of wildfire smoke and short and long-term health effects  More susceptible populations; signs and symptoms of wildfire smoke  Projections for Spring and Summer 2026; staying informed on wildfire smoke conditions Actionable strategies for protecting health during wildfire smoke events Reducing the impacts of wildfire smoke on indoor air quality Steps to protecting your patients, residents, and clients from wildfire smoke, including remote health checks for persons receiving care at home When evacuation becomes necessary  Speakers include:  Radhika Ratnabalasuriar, MD, Medical Epidemiologist, Board Certified Emergency Medicine Physician, Medical Epidemiology Unit Molly Middleton, MPH, Environmental Epidemiologist and Colorado Environmental Public Health Tracking Program Manager, Division of Environmental Health and Sustainability  Kristen Good, MEM, PhD, Health Equity Branch Deputy Chief, Occupational Health and Wildfire Smoke Preparedness Programs Manager, Division of Disease Control and Public Health Response Melanie Roth-Lawson, Emergency Response Coordinator/Trainer, Health Facilities and Emergency Medical Services Division We encourage you to share this training with your staff. Register for the webinar.  Please use this webinar link to join the meeting on Tuesday, June 9 @ 11:00 AM  Meeting ID: 896 2236 8744; Passcode: 918322  Please add the meeting information and link to your calendar for Tuesday, June 9 @ 11:00 AM. If you have any questions, please contact Melanie.Roth-Lawson@state.co.us

Understanding Dementia, A Course for Caregivers, 4-hour Basic Dementia Training

 

In 2022, the Colorado legislature passed SB 22-079, CRS section 25-1.5-118, requiring all direct-care staff who work in Assisted Living facilities to complete at least 4 hours of basic Dementia training and 2 hours of continuing education every 2 years. Facilities are responsible for making the required training available to direct-care staff at no cost.  The Department is pleased to announce a new 4-hour basic Dementia e-learning course, titled Understanding Dementia, A Course for Caregivers, that is now available to all direct-care staff throughout the state. The course, developed in partnership with an outside vendor, satisfies the requirements for initial dementia training and is available for free in both English and Spanish. To access the training, staff must log in or register for a CoTrain account.  CoTrain Website How to register:  To register for CoTrain, please create an account and then create your Train Profile.   How to create an account How to complete your CoTrain profile How to access the training: Once you’ve set up your CoTrain account, Please log in and search for Course ID 1134696 to access the dementia learning series in English. For the dementia learning series in Spanish it is Course ID 1134697. Next, click the green “Register” button at the top right of the screen. Didn’t receive a verification code after setting up your CoTrain Account? Check your spam folder. If the email is not in your spam folder, the email may be blocked by your agency, and you will need to speak with your IT department. The dementia course is listed as a 4-hour course, but once I register, the complete list of modules shows a total of seven hours. Which is correct? The course is approximately four hours long. However, because it is a learning series, each module had to be listed separately with a minimum time of one hour. Please note, this is a self-paced course, and the length to complete the course is dependent on the individual. The dementia course is a series of modules. You will need to follow these directions to access the next lesson after completing each module: After completing a lesson, select the "Exit Module" button in the upper right-hand corner of the screen. You will be taken back to the module homepage. Select the back arrow on the upper left side (under the title) to go back to the course menu. Select the next module to complete the course.  Select the green "Launch" button, and begin the next module. Continue to follow the directions to complete the series. If you have any questions regarding the training, please reach out to Dr. Steve Cox, Branch Chief, Home and Community Facilities at steve.cox@state.co.us. For assistance with setting up your CoTrain Account, please review the Tutorials or contact cdphe.co.train@state.co.us. If you continue to have issues, please reach out to Tonie Miller at tonie.miller@state.co.us.

Two separate Provider Trainings: Quality Measures (QMs) and Care Area Assessments (CAAs)

 

To: MDS Coordinators, Directors of Nursing, Billing and Coding Personnel, Licensed Nursing Facilities Administrators  From: Staff Orientation and Provider Support Program (SOPS) of the Health Facilities and Emergency Medical Services Division (HFEMSD)  Two separate Provider Trainings:  Quality Measures (QMs), Thursday, April 23rd, 10 a.m. - 1 p.m. (hosted by Cottonwood Healthcare) Care Area Assessments (CAAs), Tuesday, April 28th, 1 p.m. - 4 p.m. (hosted by Frontline Management) These two separate trainings will cover the topics of Quality Measures (QMs) and Care Area Assessments (CAAs).  Each training will be offered virtually (live) and then added to TRAIN as a self-paced training. If you are interested in attending one or both of the trainings, please contact me by email advising which training you wish to attend (one or both) and the number of people attending. A Google link will then be provided. Questions? Contact wendy.castro@state.co.us or cdphe_mds_colorado@state.co.us

Provider Training: MDS Changes - October 2024

 

To: MDS Coordinators, Directors of Nursing, Billing and Coding Personnel, Licensed Nursing Facilities Administrators From: The Health Facilities Education and Quality (HFEQ) Branch of the Health Facilities and Emergency Medical Services Division (HFEMSD) MDS Changes - October 2024 An online training for nursing facility providers to review the changes to the MDS 3.0 v1.19.1 effective 10/1/2024 is scheduled for Monday 9/30/2024. There will be four sessions available (you only need to register for one, as the information will be the same at each session):  10 am-11 am 12 pm - 1 pm 2 pm - 3 pm 4 pm - 5 pm To register for any one of the sessions, log in to CO-Train and select ‘register’ for the session that works best for you. Questions, please contact wendy.castro@state.co.us or cdphe_mds_colorado@state.co.us .

Provider Training: Skilled Nursing Facility Quality Reporting Program (SNF QRP) and Five-Star Review

 

To: MDS Coordinators, Directors of Nursing, Billing and Coding Personnel, Licensed Nursing Facilities Administrators  From: The Health Facilities Education and Quality (HFEQ) Branch of the Health Facilities and Emergency Medical Services Division (HFEMSD) Provider Training: Skilled Nursing Facility Quality Reporting Program (SNF QRP) and Five-Star Review This web-based training will take place on Tuesday, September 24, 2024, from 9:30 a.m. to 12 noon to discuss the basics of the SNF QRP, submission requirements, review reports to ensure compliance, how to minimize the impact of the SNF QRP against the Annual Payment Update (APU), and tools for calculating the Five-Star rating. Select the link to register for the virtual training, Course ID: 1123381  Always as a reminder, our complete offering of training opportunities for providers can be found at HFEMSD Provider Training Catalog. Other questions? Contact wendy.castro@state.co.us or cdphe_mds_colorado@state.co.us .