From Onboarding to Ongoing Excellence: Highlights from CHCI’s TSAM® and Competency Workshop
Sep. 8, 2026
What happens when healthcare professionals step away from their everyday responsibilities to reconsider how their organizations approach onboarding and competency? New ideas emerge. Meaningful conversations begin. And leaders return to their organizations prepared to create real change.
Forty healthcare professionals recently came together in Washington, D.C., for From Onboarding to Ongoing Excellence: Going Beyond Checklists, an immersive two-day workshop hosted by Creative Health Care Insight (CHCI). Led by Dr. Ellen Joswiak and Donna Wright, the experience explored two transformative approaches to healthcare workforce development: the Tiered Skills Acquisition Model and the Donna Wright Competency Assessment Model™.
Throughout the event, attendees gained practical strategies, exchanged ideas with fellow healthcare professionals, and developed tools they could begin using within their own organizations.
As one attendee shared: “Without a doubt the most validating and insightful seminar I have ever attended! We left with tangible items and tasks we could implement immediately. Well worth the time, money, and investment in our team!”
Day One: Rethinking Nurse Onboarding with TSAM®
The first day focused on TSAM® and its ability to create a more individualized, structured, and intentional onboarding experience.
Led by TSAM® co-innovator Dr. Ellen Joswiak, participants explored how organizations can move away from traditional, task-based orientation and instead support progressive skill development, clinical reasoning, and a more confident transition to independent practice.
The interactive format allowed attendees to consider how TSAM® could address challenges within their own organizations while learning from the experiences of others in the room.
One participant described the value of this shared learning: “Great speakers! They kept my attention. Loved the opportunity to network and learn from one another about how to make our orientation and annual training experiences better.”
Another attendee emphasized the workshop’s relevance for both new clinicians and the people supporting them: “I loved getting all of the great information on how to better support preceptors and new staff. Additionally, the competency framework is an absolute game changer! This workshop was so relevant and very much needed.”
Bringing the Learning to Life with CHCI Technology
After the first day, attendees were invited to an optional reception hosted by CHCI. In addition to connecting with one another in a more informal setting, participants received a firsthand demonstration of how the CHCI platform can help bring the strategies discussed during the workshop to life.
The demonstration illustrated how organizations can use CHCI technology to support onboarding, competency assessment, professional development, and workforce growth within one connected system.
But, we know that technology alone is not enough. That’s why CHCI is more than a technology platform. We combine purpose-built healthcare technology with healthcare expertise, strategic guidance, education, implementation support, and ongoing partnership. Our goal is not simply to give organizations new tools or introduce them to transformative methods. It is to help them successfully put those tools and methods into practice.
Whether an organization is implementing TSAM®, adopting the Donna Wright Competency Assessment Model™, strengthening an existing process, or building something new, CHCI provides both the technology and expertise needed to move forward with clarity and confidence.
CHCI is the only technology provider authorized to digitally deliver the Donna Wright Competency Assessment Model™ and the exclusive provider of education and consulting services for TSAM® implementation. This allows organizations to pair proven healthcare workforce-development methods with a flexible platform and the expert support needed to implement them successfully.
Day Two: Moving Competency Beyond the Checklist
On the second day, Donna Wright guided attendees through a more meaningful approach to ongoing competency assessment using the Donna Wright Competency Assessment Model™.
Rather than treating competency as an annual checklist or completion exercise, the model encourages organizations to focus on accountability, real-world performance, critical thinking, and the competencies that matter most. Attendees did not simply learn about the model. They explored how to apply it, discussed challenges, and identified practical opportunities to improve competency processes within their organizations.
“The discussion was lively and very interactive. I learned a lot. Thank you!”
For many participants, the experience made significant organizational change feel much more approachable.
“This session was absolutely phenomenal! Ellen and Donna have such a great way of explaining concepts that makes them easy to understand and not nearly as intimidating. I feel better prepared to help lead the initiative at my organization because of this.”
Learning That Continues Beyond the Workshop
The impact of this workshop did not end when the final session concluded. Attendees left with practical resources, renewed energy, and ideas they could bring back to their colleagues and leaders. One participant shared that attending “really helped refill my cup,” while another explained: “I learned so much from Ellen and Donna, and those lessons will continue to influence my professional practice. I will pass them on to future generations of educators.”
That sense of momentum was reflected throughout the attendee feedback:
“Loved the conference! Looking forward to talking about this and presenting at work. The speakers were very engaging.”
“Would recommend all my colleagues attend. So many takeaways that we can use now and build into our future orientation plans.”
“Excellent speakers and content. One of the best conferences I have ever attended!”
These comments capture exactly what CHCI hoped to create: an educational experience that was relevant, energizing, practical, and grounded in the real challenges healthcare professionals face.
More Than Technology: A Partner in Meaningful Change
Implementing a new platform, process, or workforce-development model can feel overwhelming. Success requires more than access to technology. It requires a thoughtful strategy, education, workflow design, implementation support, and ongoing guidance. That is where CHCI stands apart.
Our comprehensive Competency Suite and Professional Portfolio Suite are flexible enough to support each organization’s unique workforce-development needs. Our healthcare and technical experts then help organizations configure and use that technology intentionally. Rather than simply digitizing an existing process, CHCI can help your organization build a stronger process and provide the technology to bring it to life.
Whether you are ready to transform nurse onboarding through TSAM®, redesign ongoing competency assessment using the Donna Wright Competency Assessment Model™, or connect your workforce-development efforts through one purpose-built platform, CHCI is ready to help you hit the ground running.
Schedule a CHCI demonstration to explore how our technology, healthcare expertise, consulting, and implementation support can help your organization move from ideas to meaningful, sustainable results.
Frequently Asked Questions
From Onboarding to Ongoing Excellence: Going Beyond Checklists was an in-person, two-day educational workshop hosted by Creative Health Care Insight. Forty healthcare professionals came together to learn about TSAM® from Dr. Ellen Joswiak and the Donna Wright Competency Assessment Model™ from Donna Wright.
The Tiered Skills Acquisition Model is an onboarding framework that supports progressive skill development, individualized learning, clinical reasoning, and a structured transition toward independent practice.
The Donna Wright Competency Assessment Model™ helps healthcare organizations move beyond checklist-driven competency validation by focusing on accountability, ownership, real-world performance, and meaningful outcomes.
CHCI is the exclusive provider of TSAM® implementation education and consulting services. CHCI combines expert guidance, education, workflow design, implementation support, and purpose-built technology to help organizations successfully bring TSAM® into practice.
Yes. However, Creative Health Care Insight (CHCI) is the only technology provider authorized to digitally deliver the Donna Wright Competency Assessment Model™. The CHCI Competency Suite helps organizations translate the model into a connected and sustainable digital process.
No. CHCI is a strategic workforce-development partner that combines healthcare technology with expert strategy, education, consulting, implementation support, and ongoing guidance. This helps organizations not only adopt new tools and methods, but use them effectively to achieve meaningful results.