There is an old axiom that states: “If you don’t know where you are going you’ll never know when you get there.” The mission of IAHSS is simple and straight forward, advancing excellence in healthcare security and safety worldwide.

To be true to its mission, IAHSS has developed and continues to review and refine basic goals and objectives. The four goals are Education, Credentialing, Growth and Influence. Each year the board of directors and staff revisit these goals and receives input from committees, regional and chapter leadership and interested members. From this input they fashion budget and working plans for the year.

Education is the hallmark of IAHSS activities, whether achieved through educational seminars or its array of training manuals, we do things right. As a result, thousands of individuals have successfully completed training that allowed them to perform their jobs with distinction.

Credentialing is the child of our training efforts. A series of exams based on our well crafted training manuals measures the abilities of individuals to grasp the essentials of security and safety in the healthcare environment. Over 20,000 individuals have successfully achieved basic certification since its inception. Three new certification exams have been added to enhance the qualifications of the security officer. Through the IHSS Foundation, seasoned professionals at the management level can sit for the Certified Healthcare Professional Administrator (CHPA) exam and progress up to the fellow level.

Growth of the profession and membership are two areas of extreme interest to the association. As new challenges face the healthcare industry it is the role of every member of the healthcare team to bring their expertise to bear. Security and safety are two important areas that may not receive the appropriate emphasis and need a champion. Concurrently, the need for trained and prepared individuals to assume these roles is vital, membership affords an opportunity for many to assume these roles.

Influence that is based on expertise is essential and IAHSS needs the expertise of its members to change perspectives within industry and help administrators find the added value in a carefully crafted plan that reduces liability and the incidents that cause increased claims, injury or problems.