On May 1, 2008 Clearview Staffing Software will launch a new version of RSS that will include nationally validated nurse and allied test and skills checklist content. This update, according to company president David Gorman, is part of a National Validation Program designed to ensure that all of Clearview's content is reliable, relevant and non-discriminatory.

"With our National Validation Program we are taking an already outstanding product - RSS - to the next level," Gorman said. RSS is Clearview's web-based software solution for recruiting, qualifying and on-boarding medical professionals.

Clearview brought on Tammy Barben, RN, MSN, as a Clinical Consultant to help build a Competency Advisory Board and to lead the National Validation Program. Barben, a full-time hospital administrator who has also worked in various nursing specialties, holds a Masters in Nursing Administration and has 25 years experience in the healthcare industry.

"The goal in bringing in Tammy and her team was to have a group of experienced professionals who understand what is needed to properly assess clinical proficiency, and who are capable of developing content that is relevant by today's healthcare standards," Gorman said. Barben created a Clinical Advisory Team of healthcare experts who have extensive professional, management and educational experience in the healthcare industry.

"The team is made up of people I know who are experts in their fields," Barben said. She added that the Clinical Advisory Board is comprised of professionals and educators from various areas of nursing including: Med/Surg, Critical Care, Cardiology, Emergency Room and Flight Nursing, Infection Control, Quality Control and Risk Management, Respiratory Therapy, Radiology, Surgical Services, Psychiatric and other Nursing specialties.

As part of the National Validation Program, Clearview surveyed its customers in an effort to gain a thorough understanding of their needs as they pertain to competency tests and skills checklists.

"The validation process has two parts," said Barben. The first part includes professional validation of all skills checklists and competency tests by the Clinical Advisory Team, she added. "The second part of the process includes validating the content to identify bias on the basis of gender, race, ethnicity, age and geographic location," she added.

"Clearview has licensed a validation program from Biddle Consulting Group, a California-based consultancy that specializes in Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) and Affirmative Action (AA) litigation support, test validation and development, and cutting-edge software," Gorman said.

Beyond that, an on-going partnership between Clearview and the Clinical Advisory Board will exist to ensure that all content is updated and validated on an annual basis. "Annual validation will ensure that Clearview is delivering top-notch, relevant and reliable content," Gorman said.