E-learning and LMS blog articles

There are a great many benefits that come with implementing a learning management system (LMS) within healthcare organisations. With examples such as a streamlined onboarding process across all departments, tapping into data-driven insights from LMS reporting tools and quicker training deployment for updated procedures, the advantages of using a healthcare LMS have resulted in the rapid adoption of e-learning technology for many organisations over the past decade. For healthcare organisations that have yet to implement an LMS or are searching for a new one – what should they look out for when choosing their perfect solution? Keep reading to find out.

What is an LMS?

A learning management system (LMS) is a digital platform used to manage and measure e-learning and online training by uniting all the elements required to deliver a powerful L&D programme, including content creation, training, assessment, and reporting.

Looking for more information on LMSs? Read our ultimate guide here.

Our top 6 tips for choosing the right healthcare LMS for your organisation:

Think about the user experience

Within the NHS and other large healthcare organisations, the vast assortment of drastically different job functions and departments can present a number of unique L&D challenges. With job roles ranging from dispensary assistants to senior paediatric nurses, components such as proficiency levels and skill sets will vary for each employee. To counteract this, it’s important to consider the individual user experience when choosing a healthcare LMS.

When it comes to using a healthcare LMS, some employees will find it more difficult to get to grips with a new platform than others and many healthcare employees won’t have a great deal of time to spare on learning how to use it. It’s essential that a healthcare LMS is easy to use, with a straightforward UX so that anyone can use it regardless of existing skills, age, job role etc.

When choosing a healthcare LMS, look out for UX factors such as clear navigation and a straightforward log-in experience. While many LMSs will feature a solid UX foundation, finding an LMS partner who can maximise the effectiveness of the UX experience can yield better results. Our Totara and Moodle platforms have been improved with our unique UX enhancements – at no extra cost to our clients. With features such as a streamlined and intuitive dashboard, healthcare staff can easily and quickly access their learning, making the L&D process more efficient across the board, find out more about our UX-enhanced platforms here.

Why is a good user experience so important? Find out here.

Evaluate the features and functionality

When choosing the perfect healthcare LMS, an essential step in weighing up its value and potential is to look at the range of features and functionality it boasts. While every LMS will offer similar core features, such as content management and data tracking, there are a number of key features and functions that will set one LMS apart from another.

Consider the fundamental L&D problems that you're looking for your LMS to solve and evaluate whether it offers the right features and functionality to achieve this. For example, an organisation in need of a way to identify skills gaps within a department will need an LMS with robust assessment tools.

We put together an essential list of features that healthcare organisations should look out for in an LMS, including course development tools, learning pathways, reports, and team dashboards. To read the full list, you can visit this blog here.

Consider cost and ROI

Many healthcare organisations will have strict budgets and limited resources that will be a determining factor when considering a new e-learning solution, so finding an LMS that offers value for money and a strong ROI will be of the utmost importance. Key considerations such as choosing an easy-to-use, open-source LMS may allow you to save money on licence fees and cut further costs by allowing LMS admins to customise the platform in-house.

While choosing the right platform can guarantee a strong ROI, finding an LMS partner that offers true value for money by providing support and sharing advanced technical knowledge can further increase long-term ROI. What’s more, LMS hosting providers can increase the value of your LMS by delivering elements such as a swift implementation process and software training.

How do you measure the true cost of an LMS? Find out by reading our Hidden Costs eBook.

Consider your LMS support options

As mentioned above, an LMS hosting provider can offer services such as migration, implementation, training, ensuring the platform is compatible with existing systems, and platform upgrades, and one of the most important benefits an LMS provider can offer is ongoing support.

For healthcare organisations, L&D initiatives involve delivering life-saving training programmes, so limiting platform downtime to ensure employees have continuous access to vital training content is a key factor in choosing the right LMS solution. Finding an LMS provider that offers plenty of support will ensure technical issues are resolved quickly and efficiently.

With our HubkenCore package, our clients receive unlimited support – find out more here.

Compliance support and security

The healthcare sector is heavily regulated with strict compliance regulations that all staff must adhere to. This can have a significant impact on finding the right healthcare LMS, with considerations around data security and compliance training features playing a key role in the decision-making process.

With features such as comprehensive reporting tools, automation technology, hierarchies, and content creation tools – the right LMS can provide healthcare organisations with peace of mind when it comes to delivering compliance training and providing regulatory bodies with evidence of compliance.

What is compliance training? Read our full breakdown here.

Does your LMS offer scalability and flexibility?

To get the most out of an LMS, it needs to offer adaptability, flexibility and scalability. Your LMS needs to grow with your organisation so options such as multi-tenancy may have a significant impact on the decision-making process. With multiple departments in need of a diverse range of L&D courses, healthcare organisations can use multi-tenancy in an LMS to create multiple independent learning environments known as ‘tenants’ within a single LMS solution. As a result, each tenant can cater to the unique training requirements of each department or team, meaning healthcare organisations can scale up their L&D offering without having to pay for multiple LMSs.

When a healthcare LMS offers powerful customisation options, LMS users are able to maximise its effectiveness by utilising features such as branding tools, personalisation tools and offline learning – giving healthcare professionals the flexibility to access training content anywhere and at any time.

What is multi-tenancy? Visit our LMS functionality page.

Discover your perfect healthcare LMS with Hubken

Choosing the right platform and LMS partner will have a transformative effect on your healthcare L&D initiatives. Having run through some of the key components to look for in your next healthcare LMS, now is the time to explore what a powerful e-learning solution from Hubken can do for you. We help organisations like yours achieve their L&D goals which is why we have created a free dedicated healthcare LMS hub. Visit our hub today or get in touch with one of our e-learning experts to find out more about our product offerings.