New CHHSM Webinar Series to Offer Wide Range of Topics, Services for Members

The UCC’s Council for Health and Human Service Ministries (CHHSM) begins a series of webinars over the summer to help CHHSM members and their employees better serve their clients. The first, Managing Cross-Contamination after COVID, takes place Tuesday, May 25, at 2 p.m.

“CHHSM has decided to offer this ongoing series of webinars in order to leverage the technological insights gained during the pandemic, which are increasing communication and interaction among our members,” says Michael J. Readinger, president and CEO. “One thing we’ve learned over the past 14 months is that people are longing for the more frequent communication avenues made possible through such vehicles as Zoom meetings for our Affinity Groups, and these webinars.”

The free webinar is hosted by CHHSM and Care Purchasing Services — the group purchasing agent behind the CHHSM Store. Scheduled to last 45 minutes, it includes a video presentation followed by a live Q-and-A session run by Contec Professional, Inc., a family-owned company based in Spartanburg, S.C., that specializes in contamination control technology.

During the webinar, “attendees will learn about the risk inherent in a cleaning process that utilizes reusable cleaning products — specifically reusable, microfiber mops and rags — that are laundered for reuse,” says Harry McBride, Contec business manager and co-presenter. “A process that utilizes single-use, disposable microfiber cleaning products leads to much cleaner, safer results with less hassle.” McBride will present the webinar with Giff Timothy, a Contec staff member in charge of implementation trainings.

The webinar is useful to any facility or organization dealing with keeping clients safe, including acute care, nursing, residential care, ambulatory health services, education, fitness centers, and more, says Natalia Hernandez, the CPS customer representative for CHHSM members.

Register for the May 25 CHHSM/CPS webinar by May 24. Join the webinar May 25 online or by phone: +1 319-423-3386,,848265523#; Conference ID: 848 265 523#.

Two Additional Webinars This Summer

On Monday, June 21, from 2 to 3 p.m. ET, CHHSM and long-time Annual Gathering sponsor Ziegler will host a webinar geared to CHHSM’s single-site providers. Sustainability, Scale & Sophistication for Single-Site Providers will talk about the vision moving forward and the need to thrive, not simply just survive, in the years ahead. Attendees will be provided with the tools necessary to enhance scale, explore partnerships when needed, and make critical decisions to ensure long-term sustainability.

The webinar will be hosted by the Ziegler team of Dan Hermann, president and CEO, Stephen Johnson, Tom Meyers, and LIsa McCracken. Ziegler — a Chicago-based, privately held investment bank, capital markets and proprietary investments firm — specializes in the healthcare, senior living and education sectors, as well as general municipal and structured finance, to help generate a positive impact on the communities it serves.

The final summertime webinar, Building a Resilient Ministry, takes place Wednesday, Aug. 11, from 1 to 3 p.m. ET. Sponsored by CHHSM and the United Methodist Association of Health and Welfare Ministries (UMA), the webinar focuses on building resiliency in Child, Youth, and Family Ministries. It will be the first-ever CHHSM webinar to provide social work CEUs for attendees.

The webinar’s leader will be Frank Kros, a career child advocate who has served as a childcare worker, child abuse investigator, children’s home administrator, consultant, professor, attorney, writer, and speaker.

Additional detailed information about the June and August webinars will be posted in coming weeks.

“We are excited about the ability to offer these webinars for our members,” says Readinger. “Through the webinar format, we will be able to increase our ability to help CHHSM members create a more just, caring, and compassionate world.”

Read this month’s “From the President” column on Emerging from the pandemic.