The Certified Professional in Healthcare Quality (CPHQ) Certification

The CPHQ is more than a certification. It’s validation of your knowledge and competency against the industry-standard for delivering excellence in healthcare Quality & Safety. As the only accredited certification in healthcare Quality, the CPHQ will help you excel in your job, grow your career, and be a true Quality champion. It is recommending it for skilling individuals and coordinating teams. You help advance Quality. The CPHQ helps advance you.

Benefits of CPHQ Certification

• Successful certification and demonstrated competency against the industry-standard.
• Elevated performance within your current job.
• Distinction from others in the industry, and endorsement by key opinion leaders and peers.
• Opened doors for new career paths.
• Proven commitment to professional development by staying current with healthcare Quality & Safety knowledge and skills.
• Ability to showcase your credential through printable certificates, digital badges and purchasable pin.

The CPHQ is becoming increasingly important as it demonstrates in a tangible way a commitment to quality. To be successful in a healthcare career, it is important to know what you are talking about when it comes to quality and achieving your CPHQ shows that you do.

Why CPHQ is a Valuable Addition

A CPHQ is a valuable addition to other professional certifications. It is the only accredited healthcare Quality certification. The exam measures the breadth of knowledge and mastery of foundational skills mapped to the Framework. Content is evaluated and updated every 3-5 years, ensuring its relevance and accuracy.

Other Important Certifications in Healthcare

Beyond CPHQ, several other certifications are crucial for advancing healthcare quality and safety. These include specialized credentials that address various facets of medical practice and administration.

Certified in Healthcare Quality Management (CHQM)

Certified in Healthcare Quality Management (CHQM) compiles the most current information on a vast array of healthcare quality issues, tools, and strategies. The CHQM course explains performance excellence and provides a set of tools for managing healthcare quality issues confronted by healthcare quality professionals in the selection, implementation, and management of healthcare quality programs used in healthcare organizations.

Certified Patient Safety Professional (CPSP)

Certified Patient Safety Professional (CPSP) covers the current climate of managed care, tight cost controls, limited resources, and the growing demand for health care services, conditions for medical errors are ripe. Nearly 100,000 people die each year from medical errors and tens of thousands more are injured. Certified Patient Safety Professional (CPSP) is designed to enhance the healthcare professional’s ability to implement recent changes in the industry and offers practical guidance on implementing systems.

Certified Risk Management Professional (CRMP)

Certified Risk Management Professional (CRMP) covers basic concepts of risk management in healthcare, employment practices, and general risk management strategies. It also goes over specific risk areas including medical malpractice, strategies to reduce liability, managing positions and litigation alternatives. Certified Risk Management Professional (CRMP) includes an emphasis on outpatient medicine and the risks associated with electronic medical records.

Certified Medication Safety Professional (CMSP)

Medication safety is the most challenging goal for pharmacy practice and patient safety professionals in all health care facilities. Certified Medication Safety Professional (CMSP) is the trusted resource thousands of new and experienced medication safety officers have relied on for years. Certified Medication Safety Professional (CMSP) is an invaluable resource for new to medication safety or an experienced professional.

Certified Professional Healthcare Surveyor (CPHS)

Certified Professional Healthcare Surveyor (CPHS) is the trusted resource thousands of new and experienced accreditation professionals have relied on for years. Certified Professional Healthcare Surveyor (CPHS) not only provides insider information on how to prepare for, survive, and respond to a hospital survey, it also provides context about the accreditation process to help new and veteran accreditation professionals understand the why as well.

Certified Infection Control and Prevention (CICP)

Certified Infection Control and Prevention (CICP) focus on the elevation of awareness of the gaps in infection control performance metrics to the frontline staff. CICP is essential to the success of improvement initiatives. Certified Infection Control and Prevention (CICP) helps attendees understand how the data were collected to establish clinical credibility and to know the expectations related to their role in the prevention of HAI. CICP materials meet the requirements of a culture of safety.

NAHQ and Its Offerings

The National Association for Healthcare Quality (NAHQ) provides comprehensive support, training and education all aligned with the Healthcare Quality Competency Framework, and of course the NAHQ community of passionate healthcare professionals. Our continuing education offerings – provided live, virtually or on-demand – give individuals and teams the tools and resources to reach their fullest potential.

Education and Training

NAHQ offers individual training including HQ Concepts, HQ Principles, Continuing Education, and NAHQ Learning Labs. For professional assessment, NAHQ next and On-Demand sessions are available. Higher Education Programs provide access to educational content and graduate credit for CPHQ.

Credentials

Beyond CPHQ, NAHQ also offers Micro-Credentials in Health Data Analytics and Performance and Process Improvement. These credentials help in professional development and skill enhancement.

Organizational Programs

Organizational Programs include the Workforce Accelerator and Team Training, which also offer CPHQ CE Credit. These programs are designed for health systems, hospitals, and other organizations to reduce costs, increase engagement, and improve health outcomes.

Community and Membership

The NAHQ community is unlike any other, comprised of like-minded, passionate professionals striving to advance Quality & Safety throughout the industry. Members enjoy access to a robust Career Center, plus opportunities for peer recognition, networking, and volunteering. Options available for Individual, Emeritus and Student membership. Group Membership is available for teams of 10 or more within an organization. If you want to be a Force for Quality, join more than 10,000 professionals committed to advancing the discipline of healthcare Quality & Safety, as well as their own careers.

Comparison of Healthcare Certifications

Certification	Focus Area	Key Benefits
CPHQ	Healthcare Quality & Safety	Validation of knowledge, career growth, industry standard, accredited.
CHQM	Healthcare Quality Management	Performance excellence, managing quality issues, program implementation.
CPSP	Patient Safety	Reducing medical errors, implementing industry changes, practical guidance.
CRMP	Risk Management	Basic concepts of risk, medical malpractice reduction, EMR risks.
CMSP	Medication Safety	Challenging pharmacy practice goals, resource for medication safety officers.
CPHS	Healthcare Surveying	Accreditation process, survey preparation, understanding regulatory context.
CICP	Infection Control & Prevention	Gaps in infection control, improvement initiatives, preventing HAIs.