Before the Survey – Readiness, Risk, and Leadership Responsibilities

September 8, 2026
Learners will understand the managers role in supporting continuous survey readiness prior to and during survey activity. From tracer activity to communication with internal team members, leaders will learn how to better prepare themselves and their team for survey activity. They will leave with an understanding of the risk of non-compliance with regulatory and accreditation requirements and how it impacts both patients and the organization.

Target Audience

  • Nurses
  • Other Healthcare Professionals

Learning Objectives

At the conclusion of this activity, participants should be able to:  
  • Explain regulatory and accreditation survey processes.
  • Define manager responsibilities for survey readiness, risk reduction, and staff preparation.
  • Identify common compliance challenges and appropriate mitigation strategies.
  • Apply leadership practices that support continuous survey readiness.

Course summary

Available credit: 
  • 2.00 ANCC
  • 2.00 General CE - Attendance
Course opens: 
09/08/2026
Course expires: 
11/07/2026
Event starts: 
09/08/2026 - 12:00pm CDT
Event ends: 
09/08/2026 - 2:00pm CDT
Add to calendar: 
FACULTY & PLANNERS
Faculty
Wendy Forys, JM, MSN, BS, RN
Associate Vice President Regulatory and Accreditation Services
Vizient
 
Karen Fields, MSN, RN
Regulatory Specialist
Yale New Haven Health System
 
Planners
Susan Richman, MD, MPH
Associate Clinical Professor
Yale New Haven Health System
 
Marilu Kelly, MSN, RN, NPD-BC, CHCP
Director, Continuing Education      
Vizient
 
Kim Cambric  
CE Programs Manager             
Vizient
 
Samantha Gordon, MS
CE Programs Manager             
Vizient
 
DISCLOSURE
As an accredited provider of continuing education, Vizient, Inc. is dedicated to ensuring this activity presents learners with only accurate, balanced, scientifically justified recommendations, and is free from promotion, marketing, and commercial bias. In accordance with The Standards for Integrity and Independence in Accredited Continuing Education, all planners, faculty, and others in control of the educational content have disclosed the absence or existence of all financial relationships (of any dollar amount) with ineligible companies within the past 24 months.
 

Ineligible companies – those companies whose primary business is producing, marketing, selling, re-selling, or distributing healthcare products used by or on patients.

It is Vizient’s policy that owners and employees of ineligible companies, and any individuals who refuse to disclose the absence or existence of financial relationships with any ineligible companies are disqualified from participating as planners or faculty.

 
Statement of Content Validity
Vizient, Inc. educational activities are intended to assist healthcare teams advance their professional responsibilities in accordance with the definition of continuing education. It is the policy of Vizient, Inc. to review and ensure that all content and recommendations for patient care within accredited CE is evidenced-based, based on current science and clinical reasoning while ensuring the content is fair and balanced. All recommendations must conform to the generally accepted standards of experimental design, data collection, analysis, and interpretation. Vizient, Inc. does not permit accredited continuing education if it advocates for unscientific approaches to diagnosis or therapy, or if the education promotes recommendations, treatment, or manners of practicing healthcare that are determined to have risks or dangers that outweigh the benefits or are known to be ineffective in the treatment of patients.
 
FDA Off-Label Use
Faculty presenters are also expected to disclose any discussion of (1) off-label or investigational uses of FDA approved commercial products or devices or (2) products or devices not yet approved in the United States.
 
Disclaimer
The education provided through this activity is for continuing education purposes only. The views and opinions expressed in this activity are those of the faculty/presenters and do not necessarily reflect the views of Vizient, Inc.
 
Disclosure Statements
Absence of Relevant Financial Relationships
None of the planners, faculty, or others in a position to control content for this educational activity have relevant financial relationship(s) to disclose with ineligible companies whose primary business is producing, marketing, selling, re-selling, or distributing healthcare products used by or on patients.
Joint Accreditation Statement
In support of improving patient care, Vizient, Inc. is jointly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) to provide continuing education for the healthcare team.
 
Designation Statements

Nurses (CNE)

This activity is designated for 2.0 contact hours.

Other Healthcare Professionals

Vizient, Inc. will award all other healthcare professionals who successfully complete the activity a Certificate of Participation. Various state license boards and credentialing bodies accept certificates of participation from accredited CE activities to meet CE requirements for license renewals and re-certification. It is the responsibility of the participant to contact their state licensing board and/or certifying body for verification on credit eligibility reciprocity.

Available Credit

  • 2.00 ANCC
  • 2.00 General CE - Attendance
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Please Note: 
 
  • If the Register/Take Course tab is displayed instead of the Obtain Credit tab, you must first login to proceed with the credit claim process.
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Required Hardware/software

The Vizient CE Learner Portal is compatible with most modern web browsers (such as Firefox, Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Apple Safari) and can also be accessed with mobile devices.