​Engaging Learners with Online Training is a five-part blog series featuring stories from E-learning Institute Fellowship (ELI) alumni. Alumni have different stories to tell about the impact ELI had on their work in public health.

Nurses and clinical laboratory personnel in Florida must complete two hours of continuing education on prevention of medical errors for initial licensure and biennial renewal. As the sole creator of online courses and webinars related to laboratory topics for the Florida Department of Health (FDOH), I wanted to convert our PDF PowerPoint course for Prevention of Medical Errors into an online course that was 508 compliant. Unfortunately, I did not have the knowledge or resources to implement the transition.  

In 2014, I saw an announcement on Florida-TRAIN for ELI. I applied and was accepted. I was finally going to get guidance from online learning experts and the hands-on experience needed to transition Prevention of Medical Errors to a quality, 508 compliant online training product!

Throughout ELI, I learned about the advantages and disadvantages for various authoring tools and how to make online learning more interactive for the learner. For example, I learned that PowerPoint has numerous plugins to help in the development of storyboards, quizzes and surveys, and narration. Once ELI was completed, through a combination of teamwork with other FDOH staff members, Prevention of Medical Errors was successfully transitioned to an online format.

I highly recommend applying to ELI if you are a trainer or create online learning content. Working with experts from CDC and other ELI fellows kept me motivated and on task. From participating in ELI, I have been able to create quality training courses by focusing on developing better objectives that aim to change behavior instead of solely providing information. This was an excellent professional development opportunity that has helped me become a better trainer!