ANSI-affiliate Workcred explores recent changes to the credentialing industry during the COVID-19 pandemic, and factors the credentialing industry needs to consider amid new challenges, in a new blog post.
“Are Pandemic-Related Changes Negatively Affecting the Quality of Credentials?” highlights some obstacles to the credentialing system, such as the move to remote, online proctoring of examinations rather than delivery in a third-party testing location, and other changes spurred by the pandemic. “The implication the credentialing industry needs to consider is whether these recent changes made are changes that could be affecting the quality of the credentials, particularly the validity, reliability, fairness, and legal defensibility of the credentials,” reads the blog post.
A top challenge impacting credentialing is the total elimination of competence verification for both new and returning (retired) candidates, chiefly in critical workforce shortage occupations such as health care.
“During the height of the pandemic, many regulatory bodies suspended examinations and other qualification requirements to allow upcoming nurses and other medical students to preemptively join the workforce because of a shortage of workers,” the post explains. Similarly, retired workers with expired credentials were asked to come back to work to fill the worker void. But in light of this, personnel went back to positions without meeting the minimum competence requirements or obtaining the necessary credential.
“It remains to be seen whether these individuals will be required to go back and meet the requirements they missed (for example take the credentialing examination) after they have already entered the workforce as a practicing professional.”
Read more of the blog: Are Pandemic-Related Changes Negatively Affecting the Quality of Credentials? https://blog.ansi.org/?p=169160
About the Workcred blog: Read Workcred's point of view on quality, credentials, and the workforce to create a more integrated and effective credentialing system. To share knowledge with readers, ideas for a topics, or to comment on one of the blogs, contact the Workcred team at [email protected].