IHI Certifies 6000th Patient Safety Professional, Rapidly Growing the Ranks of the Health Care Workforce with Competencies in Safety

Patient safety certifications increased by 20% in 14 months, marking fastest pace of growth in the newly accredited program’s 11-year history

The Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) today announced that 6,000 health care professionals have earned the Certified Professional in Patient Safety^TM (CPPS) credential, measurably increasing the size of the health care workforce that has demonstrated competency in patient safety domains – including culture, leadership, systems thinking, human factors safety risks and solutions – and performance measurement and improvement. IHI achieved this milestone just 14 months after celebrating 5,000 certificants, representing a 20% increase in CPPS professionals since 2022, which is the fastest pace of growth since the credentialing program began in 2012.

Dr. Nitin Lee Mehdiratta, Anesthesiologist and Critical Care Specialist at Duke University Hospital, was the 6,000^th health care professional to be certified with the CPPS credential. “I have worked on many different projects throughout the hospital but was always curious if I could be doing a better job leading them. The CPPS coursework and credential helped me feel confident that I was bringing the core standards of patient safety to my projects and applying sound principles to my everyday work.”

“In just over a year, more than 1,000 health care colleagues from around the globe have earned the CPPS credential, an acceleration that reflects the importance of ensuring that all patients receive safer care,” said Patricia McGaffigan, RN, MS, CPPS, IHI Vice President and President of Certification Board of Professionals in Patient Safety (CBPPS). “We commend every CPPS certificant for gaining and validating much-needed competencies in safety. Their individual pursuit strengthens our collective ability to create a safe, reliable, and equitable health care system that harms no patient or member of the workforce.”

Last month, the National Commission for Certifying Agencies (NCCA) accredited the CPPS program, providing independent affirmation that it achieves the highest quality standards for credentialing education, examination, experience, and ethics. NCCA accreditation enables the CPPS exam to continue to be listed as a designated certification exam for Magnet® recognition. To expand equitable access to this rigorous certification program, IHI offers scholarships that cover the full cost of the CPPS review course, practice exam, and CPPS exam.

“It is critical for everyone involved in health care today to continuously improve their safety competencies to achieve much needed transformational progress in patient safety,” added McGaffigan. “We offer education, resources, and networks that build capabilities for the practice of safe care, improve the safety of health care settings and systems, and expand access to the CPPS credential. NCCA accreditation validates that our rapidly expanding program meets expectations for the highest standards of credentialing excellence.”

The CPPS program was launched in 2012 by the CBPPS at the National Patient Safety Foundation (NPSF), which is now part of IHI. Patient safety professionals representing 50 US states and 32 countries have earned the CPPS credential. Certification requires a combination of education and experience and successful completion of the evidence-based certification exam. Certificants span clinical settings and include nurses, physicians, pharmacists, safety, quality and risk managers and leaders, health care executives, medical students and residents, academic faculty, industry, and many more clinical and non-clinical professionals committed to creating safer care for all.

About the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI)

The Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) is an independent not-for-profit organization based in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. For more than 30 years, IHI has used improvement science to advance and sustain better outcomes in health and health systems across the world. IHI brings awareness of safety and quality to millions, catalyzes learning and the systematic improvement of care, develops solutions to previously intractable challenges, and mobilizes health systems, communities, regions, and nations to reduce harm and deaths. IHI collaborates with a growing community to spark bold, inventive ways to improve the health of individuals and populations. IHI generates optimism, harvests fresh ideas, and supports anyone, anywhere who wants to profoundly change health and health care for the better. Learn more at ihi.org.

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