Listening to the Pulse: CCI’s 2024 Agenda with CEO Melissa Nosik
Recently appointed CEO of the Competency and Credentialing Institute (CCI), Melissa Nosik, isn’t a trained OR nurse. However, she has a robust background in healthcare, spanning 20 years, and a passion for advancing industry standards. She earned her education in applied behavior analysis and began her career working with adults and children with disabilities, teaching them daily life skills to become more independent. Her first opportunity to help an organization with systems improvement was with the Behavior Analyst Certification Board (BACB) as their Deputy CEO, where she spent almost ten years. She was training to be CEO but was ready to move into the role before her boss retired, landing her at CCI. Read on about Nosik’s goals for the organization going into 2024.
Vision for CCI:
“The vision for CCI is to uphold a commitment to excellence, foster a culture of continuous learning, and drive quality standards in perioperative nursing. Key goals include enhancing accessibility through technological advancements, strengthening partnerships with industry stakeholders and academic institutions, and fostering a work environment with a strong culture of collaboration that values diversity and inclusion.
The IT infrastructure at a certification board is complex to develop because there is no customizable software product that meets every type of certification program. Certain boards must develop their software as they develop their credentials, which can be limiting. This will be the year of reviewing our back-end systems for our current credentials.”
Brand New Website:
“CCI will launch our new, user-friendly website at the end of January 2024 as part of our commitment to embracing technological advancements. This digital facelift aims to provide a seamless and enriching experience for nurses and the public. The foundational change to our website is the first step in several planned improvements to our digital presence.”
New Certification Programs:
“We have plans to introduce new credential designations for the CNOR nurses. After surveying our nurses, it was clear that those individuals who specialize in certain areas are interested in having a way to show their expertise in that area. Sometimes, an OR nurse might specialize in pediatrics or cardiac. There isn’t a good way for an OR nurse to say they have this many hours of experience working in either of those specialties. I anticipate a series of new media, educational resources, and micro-credentials focused on specialized areas of practice in perioperative nursing.”
Alliances and Partnerships:
“A report on the future of credentialing highlights the importance of collaborative relationships between industry-supporting organizations. For that reason, I am working hard to develop relationships with all stakeholders and professional organizations in perioperative nursing. These alliances are integral to co-creating innovative programs and initiatives that propel the industry into the new era of supporting perioperative nurses. We are better when we work together collaboratively with the goal of providing an infrastructure that is good for our practitioners.”
DEI Initiatives:
“In addition to the existing DEI Grant Program, CCI is actively exploring new initiatives to address disparities in credentialing opportunities. My board had talked about hosting a leadership summit as part of our DEI program and having so many seats for that leadership summit dedicated to individuals working in underserviced areas. The commitment to inclusivity and diversity remains a priority, with potential expansions to the grant program in the pipeline.”
Community Engagement:
“Community engagement is crucial, and CCI plans to engage the community to examine needs and expectations. This involves actively seeking feedback, conducting surveys, and creating channels for open communication to ensure that CCI continues to meet the evolving needs of the perioperative nursing community. We have several workgroups planned for 2024 that will involve reaching out to our nurses and seeking subject matter expertise for important discussions. One of the workgroups that I am particularly interested in hearing discussion about is the CSSM certification program. We will be doing our periodic review of eligibility and maintenance requirements and discussing the data since CSSM was introduced in 2015.”
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Carisa Brewster
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