For most infection preventionists (IPs), CIC certification is an important goal along their career path. Employers and professional organizations like The Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) endorse and support IP certification, and CIC certification is widely recognized as a marker of qualification for infection preventionists.
One group that focuses on the importance of certification is Infection Prevention & Management Associates (IP&MA). IP&MA is a consulting company that focuses on infection prevention program development, onsite program management, Infection Preventionist education, and crisis intervention.
Findings from a highly successful IP training and development program were presented at the 2024 SHEA Spring Conference and later published in the American Journal of Infection Control. The study reported an impressive 98% first attempt pass rate on the CIC exam among participants over a seven-year period. DOI: 10.1016/j.ajic.2024.07.015
Several members of their senior leadership team shared their thoughts on certification and training of the next generation of the infection prevention workforce.
The Importance of CIC Certification
“Our company has tended to hire early career, master’s level candidates with backgrounds in public health or epidemiology. Many of them are in their first roles in a clinical healthcare setting, and we want to make sure they have the skills they need to be successful in infection prevention intervention and program management,” says Jennifer McCarty. Sandi Steinfeld adds “when I am speaking to candidates, I make it very clear that our expectation is certification”
CBIC certification is an industry accepted certification that signifies that a novice IP has achieved a level of competency. Because many of IP&MA’s early career IPs are from historically underrepresented fields, it is a mark of competency that recognizes comparable skill with IPs from other backgrounds. Ginny Kennedy, IP&MA founder and principal adds “It is important for the individual in terms of helping them develop a personalized career path. An IP with experience, but without certification may find it more challenging to progress in their career.”
Supporting Certification Success
IP&MA has developed a structured Infection Preventionist training program that supports new IPs through knowledge and competency development, application of skills in practice, mentor support, and preparation. Kelly Holmes shared “our goal with our training program is to make sure that IPs are knowledgeable and well prepared, so that they are successful in their program and successful when they take the CIC certification exam”
This training program has since been expanded outside of their organization, and IP&MA has been very successful in preparing both their team and IPs outside their organization for certification success.
Early Career IP Training
Because IP&MA has determined that CIC certification is important to the success and growth of early career IPs, they have developed structured training programs to prepare novice IPs for infection prevention practice competency and knowledge needed for CIC certification. Kelly Holmes describes their initial training program:
We are decentralized and have IPs practicing in multiple facilities. It is important for us to have our IPs in different facility types across the spectrum of care and in different geographic regions to have consistency in their practice and training. We begin all novice IPs with a three-month onboarding where we cover the basics of practice so they can work effectively on focused areas from their first weeks in on the job and then have an expanded series of modules that cover expanded competency and practice areas. Our training approach is multi-modal, incorporating self-guided learning through essential practice resources and guidance documents, live cohort-based lectures for each training module, and knowledge validation quizzes to reinforce learning. To support their development, each novice IP is paired with an advanced practice IP who serves as an ongoing resource, as well as a near-peer mentor who demonstrates skill application and validates competency. By integrating structured learning, mentorship, and hands-on experience, we ensure that our IPs develop the confidence and expertise needed to succeed in diverse healthcare environments.
After the novice IP has the initial skills, and validated competency, training turns towards preparation for the certification. This training is asynchronous and self-paced, with recorded training videos on areas highlighted in the CIC examination content outline, along with study guides to help IPs identify areas of needed focus. We have also developed a practice exam, which we have found can help mitigate testing anxiety, particularly for more advanced practice IPs who may have delayed certification due to concerns around testing.
Expansion of Training
We have used this model not only within our company and have worked through the training program with IPs in other organizations. We have found it to be effective with novice IPs new to the field from multiple background, and IPs who have been in practice for a while, but have been hesitant to take the exam, or have entered into IP practice in an organization with limited support and training resources. We have worked with individual IPs, and with healthcare facilities and groups to identify gaps in IP competency and knowledge and focus training on plans to close those gaps for the IP team.
Long Term Success
This training program has been in place since 2009, and has been consistently refined to meet learner needs, improve processes, and adapt to the changing needs of the profession and the professionals working in infection prevention. Internally, we have trained nearly 200 novice infection preventionists within Infection Prevention & Management Associates, many of whom are still in practice today, and impacting the safety of their patients and communities. And we have trained IPs outside of our group as well.
The SHEA abstract and AJIC manuscript focus on the experience of 51 IPs over a period from 2017-2023. There are many successful IP training programs, and different structures for early career IP training and competency development, but none have measured success with taking the CIC exam. Kelley Boston notes “We wanted to have a quantification of program impact, to help us continue to improve, and to contribute our experience to the work that is being done on IP training and workforce expansion.”
To Learn More
Learn more about Infections Prevention & Management Associates’ work and training programs, including access to the CIC Readiness Course, at www.infectionprevention.com