Every business is like a body: customers are the blood while the employees are the muscle. In addition, just as you would want to eat healthy to maintain proper blood pressure and workout to stay on top of your game, businesses also need to do the same. Naturally, there is a lot of emphasis on retaining a steady flow of customers. Marketing teams are hired and capital is spent on advertising and product improvement. However, sometimes it can be difficult to identify ways to keep the workforce strong and engaged, but again, just like any workout regime it is necessary to adapt to the needs of the individual – or business.
One of the many ways Infinity Rehab keeps therapists engaged and continually strengthening their skills is through the Clinical Ladder. The purpose of the Clinical Ladder is to give our Full-Time and Part-Time Occupational, Physical and Speech-Language therapists and assistants an opportunity to gain recognition and responsibility commensurate with their advanced clinical practice. As an Infinity Rehab therapist’s career advances, they can qualify for three different levels of achievement – Clinician, Clinical Specialist, Master Clinician – based on a number of factors.
The Clinical Ladder has a positive outcome in regards to patient care – all of our therapists that take part in the program are strengthening their core abilities to provide the best possible care for patients. The program is designed in such a way that the new therapy skills and knowledge each participant gain is shared with team members on a facility level. This allows for greater continuity of care and thorough treatment of the patient.
Following is a description of how all three levels of The Clinical Ladder works. Note the strong emphasis on mentorship, participation in the therapy community-at-large and the honing of skills. These three factors out of many are just a part of what make Infinity Rehab therapists so unique in both a therapy and professional setting. We continually strive to better ourselves.
Level I – Clinician
To be eligible for Level I, the therapists must complete a six-month trial service period and have adhered to the profession’s Code of Ethics and Infinity Rehab’s Policies and Procedures. The clinician has 100% patient care responsibilities and is able to supervise volunteers and observers. The clinician must be cross-trained and knowledgeable in other areas of rehabilitation outside of their main profession and have identified at least one continuing education goal per year.
Level II – Clinical Specialist
Eligibility for Level II is based on the therapist meeting Level I requirements in addition to having two years of clinical experience in the Skilled Nursing Facility (SNF) environment, professional goals are met with 80% completion and the therapist meets productivity expectations.
The minimum expectations of a Level II Clinical Specialist include accepting to guide all levels of student internships and acting as a mentor for new staff as requested. The clinician participates in strategic planning, community education efforts and assists in documentation reviews. An additional requirement for Clinical Specialists is to attend in-service opportunities based on educational goals and then present the information to fellow staff. The final requirement to achieve Level II is to have at least two continuing education goals each year.
Level III – Master Clinician
Level III requires the therapist to have five years of SNF clinical experience and specialized board certification from organizations; like the American Occupational Therapy Association, American Physical Therapy Association and American Speech-Language Association.
A Master Clinician is expected to have 90% patient care responsibilities, utilize specialty skills in daily practice and participate in program development in their area of certification or specialization. As a leader in their field, the Master Clinician is also an active mentor in improving fellow therapists for areas of clinical expertise, provide continuing education and in-services for staff members and assist in program marketing.
The development of our career ladder has yielded positive results for our team, as measured by an industry-high retention rate, as well as continually high employee satisfaction results. Fostering the potential of our professionals is always a good investment!
