2010 Program FAQ
Living With Grief® Cancer and End-of-Life Care
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
1:30 P.M. - 4:00 P.M. EDT
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is the Hospice Foundation of America National Video Teleconference?
- How will hosting a teleconference site benefit my organization and my community?
- How do I register for the teleconference?
- What costs are involved in hosting the teleconference?
- What is the cost for an individual CE certificate?
- Are additional copies of the companion book of articles available?
- There is not a satellite dish at my organization. How can my organization participate?
- What are the webcast and satellite requirements?
- Can we provide our own CE’s?
- Are CME’s offered this year?
- What support does HFA provide in the planning and publicizing of the teleconference?
- How do I locate a site in my area?
- What is my Site ID number?
1. What is the Hospice Foundation of America National Video Teleconference?
Annually, the Hospice Foundation of America produces the National Living With Grief® Teleconference. The teleconference is a live-via-satellite televised broadcast which is simultaneously "downlinked" to satellite dishes all over the country. This allows an unlimited number of organizations and communities to participate and host the event locally.
"Each teleconference seems to be better organized for content and presentation than the year before. It is a real pleasure to be part of this endeavor!"
--Trish Benton, Hospice of Orange & Sullivan, Newburgh NY
2. How will hosting a teleconference site benefit my organization and my community?
The teleconference allows your organization to offer an award-winning educational program to health care professionals and other caregivers in your community. In addition, you have an opportunity to present your own on-site session as part of the total teleconference program, which provides new opportunities for professional collaboration and peer support and networking. Many organizations co-host sites with other area groups to share resources, broaden audiences, and help develop a strong community network that otherwise might not exist.
The teleconference also offers the opportunity for your organization to provide a high-quality training program to professionals. Three hours of Continuing Education Unit credits are available for a wide range of professions, including nurses, social workers, physicians, psychologists, licensed counselors, nursing home administrators, clergy, EMS personnel, EAP professionals, and funeral directors. Please note: each participant who applies for CEU credits must pay a $25 online processing fee ($35 via the mail) to HFA on the day of the live broadcast, this is submitted with their CEU evaluation.
Hosting organizations are encouraged to hold a local on-site session following the teleconference broadcast. (An on-site session of at least ½-hour in length is required for sites offering CEUs.) The local on-site segment increases personal involvement among the participants, strengthens interaction with the hosting organization, and highlights issues specific to each community.
"I am always surprised at how many people are interested in this program. I have offered it for the past five years and every year there are more participants."
--Marilyn Kooiker, UW Extension, Burnett County WI
3. How do I register for the teleconference?
You may register online here.
4. What costs are involved in hosting the teleconference?
There are two registration options for 2010.
Choose Option 1 ($65) if you would like to print teleconference programs and tip & resource sheets for your audience. The program and tip & resource sheet will be about 16 pages and can be downloaded for printing and copying after 2/28/10. Please consider whether you have the time, equipment and inclination to make copies for your audience.
Select Option 2 ($75) to have teleconference programs and tip & resource sheets mailed to you. These will be mailed after 2/28/10 and up until March 15.
All site coordinators, regardless of registration type, will receive a complimentary site coordinator's manual and a review copy of the 2010 Cancer and End of Life Care book written by experts. Additional materials can be purchased at a discount by site coordinators only. An extra set of 50 teleconference programs and tip & resource sheets is $15.25, and books for teleconference attendees can be purchased at a 50 percent discount, with an even larger discount for bulk orders of 20 books or more.
Bonus Package ($100)
This year, site coordinators can purchase a bonus package of the Cancer and End-of-Life Care program. The bonus package includes registration for the live program, 50 teleconference programs and a complimentary book, a full-length DVD shipped overnight to you 3 weeks after the live program, and access to an on-demand streaming video of the program, available as early as 2 days after the live event. Both the DVD and the streaming video will be available for continuing education credits to your attendees for the same small fee (30-minute local discussion is required for full credit). The bonus package is available for the low fee of $100 and may be viewed as many times as you wish. This bonus package is an excellent option if your organization has scheduling conflicts with the live program or would like to offer the program on several different dates and times.
The registration fee and orders for additional materials can be paid by check or credit card (Visa/MC/Amex) and must accompany the registration form. HFA does not charge an individual participant fee, although some sites, independently, do charge audience members a small fee at the local level to help cover their costs, such as refreshments and/or room rental fees.
Register Online Now.
5. What is the cost for an individual CE certificate?
**There is a $25 online processing fee per certificate, per participant, or $35 via mail. There is a $10 charge for each additional certificate requested. (Example: If an individual participant is requesting one Alabama Nurse certificate and one Alabama Social Worker certificate online, then he/she will owe a total of $35).** Questions about cost per CE certificate? Please contact HFA at 800-854-3402 for clarification.
6. Are additional copies of the companion book of articles available?
Additional materials can be purchased at a discount by site coordinators only. An extra set of 50 teleconference programs and tip & resource sheets is $15.25, and site coordinators receive a deep discount on the teleconference companion books. The discounted price for site coordinators is $16.00 per book (the cover price is $27.95). For site coordinators ordering books in multiples of 20, the price is further reduced to $14.00 per book. If ordering online, an even greater discount of $12.50 per book is available.
7. There is not a satellite dish at my organization. How can my organization participate?
The analog signal that is used to send out the teleconference can be accessed by a dish with either KU-band or C-band capability, which are the two most common types. To find a dish in your community, contact a local college or university, medical center, municipal office, school system, or even a local hotel. Your local public television station may also be able to assist you.
For the past 16 years, HFA has distributed our annual teleconference via satellite to hundreds of thousands of viewers. We now also provide site coordinators the option to show the teleconference via live streaming video webcast. Please note that the video webcast is only available to sites that register with HFA. You must register to receive the Internet link that will provide you access to the webcast.
8. What are the webcast and satellite requirements?
To view the teleconference via satellite, you will need a monitor with sound and a steerable satellite, either an analog signal that can receive the C-band or the KU-band frequency, or a digital satellite that can receive the KU-band frequency. The exact satellite coordinates will be posted to the site coordinator's password-protected website in early April.
To view the teleconference via webcast, you will need the following system requirements:
-Windows computer or Mac computer (with OSX)
-Windows Media Player (or RealVideo):
For Windows, version 7 minimum (version 9 recommended)
For Mac, version 9 running on OSX operating system
-High speed Internet connection:
150KB minimum
500KB or better for optimum quality (larger window, smoother motion)
-Audio capability
If you intend to provide this webcast to a large audience, you will also need an LCD projector and audio public address system. Please be aware that webcasting does not provide the same level of video quality as satellite broadcasts; if you have shown the HFA teleconference previously to audiences via satellite and change to webcasting, there may be a noticeable viewing difference for your audience.
We strongly suggest you test your satellite and/or webcast before broadcast day. This test will provide you or your satellite technician with ample time to troubleshoot and solve any problems prior to the broadcast. HFA cannot control technical difficulties at downlink sites; therefore we are unable to offer any refunds.There will be one hour of test time approximately one week prior to the live broadcast and one hour of test time immediately before the teleconference begins. Full details will be available on the site coordinator’s page on HFA’s website in early March.
9. Can we provide our own CE’s?
Living with Grief® Teleconferences are protected by copyright law and are produced and owned by Hospice Foundation of America. HFA allows its Living with Grief® program to be licensed for use by approved providers issuing their own continuing education, for boards that HFA is not already approved by, for a $150 licensing fee.
The licensing fee enables your organization to provide - with HFA's permission - continuing education credits for professional boards for which your organization is a provider. Please note that you must be a provider for a board that we are not already approved by (please see anticipated board approval list). If you are offering CE credits for a board that we are already approved by, then we ask that you go through HFA to receive those credits.
For example, HFA is not approved by the Iowa Board of Nursing, so we allow organizations who are providers for the Iowa Board of Nursing to use our content (via the Licensing Fee Agreement) to provide their own CE’s to their participants.
If your organization is an approved provider but declines the licensing option, your participants must use HFA to receive those certificates. The certificate fee is $25 online per participant/ certificate or $35 via mail.
Please contact HFA at 800-854-3402 or via e-mail at telecon@hospicefoundation.org if you have further questions about CE opportunities for additional boards/providers (boards that are not included in HFA's approximately 70 board approvals). Important note: Approved providers licensing HFA's content must submit all participant sign-in sheets and evaluation forms to HFA immediately after the live broadcast.
10. Are CME’s offered this year?
HFA anticipates approval by the American Academy of Family Physicians this year for both Prescribed and Elective credits. Prescribed Credit is designated as AMA PRA Category 1 Credit. Please see HFA’s final list of board approvals, which will be available in early March.
11. What support does HFA provide in the planning and publicizing of the teleconference?
HFA provides each Site Coordinator with comprehensive support materials. These include a Site Coordinator's Manual, a comprehensive "how-to-do-it" guide that provides step-by-step checklists and detailed information. Site Coordinators receive ideas about audience development, guidelines on structuring the local portion of the program, and useful suggestions about planning the event. HFA also provides a complete Media Kit on computer diskette. The kit includes a sample press release, calendar listings, letters to the editor and other officials, public service announcements, and a simple brochure that can be localized with your information. Teleconference materials are made available at HFA's web site in a special password-protected page for Site Coordinators only. Additional materials include programs to distribute to attendees, full CEU support materials, and a copy of HFA's companion book of essays written by leading experts in the field of loss and aging.
12. How do I locate a site in my area?
The live program was aired in March 2010.
13. What is my Site ID number?
This number can be found on your registration confirmation/receipt that was e-mailed to you. If you did not receive this email confirmation, please contact HFA at 800-854-3402 or via email at telecon@hospicefoundation.org.
