The Certified Medical Harm Communicator Training Program
The Certified Medical Harm Communicator (CMHC) training equips healthcare providers with the skills to communicate with empathy, rebuild trust, and support healing—teaching you the practical tools to provide support and guidance to patients and families when harm occurs. The training is fully online, self-paced, and immediately accessible, so you can start learning whenever you're ready.
Download our
Communication After Harm Checklist.
We understand the challenges you face.
Healthcare professionals face intense pressure after harm happens. Most are unprepared and unsure what to say. These emotionally charged moments take a personal toll and are compounded by unclear protocols, inconsistent leadership support, and conflicting advice. With limited guidance and time pressure to “handle it quickly,” professionals often feel unprepared and unsupported.
Comms Corps provides practical, responsible, compassionate training to help teams communicate clearly, confidently, and ethically after harm events.
Become a Certified Medical Harm Communicator
Let’s change the way healthcare communicates— together.
CMHC Program Details:
📚 Taught by: Leilani Schweitzer
🕒 Duration: 4.0 hours total
🎥 Content: Online and self-paced.
4.0 Continuing Medical Education Credits provided by AffinityCE are available upon successful completion.
📜 Certification: To earn CMHC certification, learners must watch all four one-hour video trainings and score at least 80% on the 10-question multiple-choice quiz at the end of each training.
Individual price: $279 per learner.
Group discounts: Available for three or more learners from the same organization. Contact us to discuss larger groups.
Annual renewal is required to keep your Certified Medical Harm Communicator certification in good standing. Renewal costs $70 per learner and requires completing a new one-hour training and passing its quiz. Successful completion provides one CME credit.
What You’ll Learn:
Learn the skills to create transformational impact and achieve actionable outcomes by providing practical support and guidance to the people impacted by harm events, including:
How to Be Prepared for Harm Events – Shift from “if” harm happens to “when” harm happens, and gain confidence in handling difficult situations.
Honest, Clear Communication – Offer plain-language explanations in complex situations, ensuring patients and families understand their circumstance and what will happen next.
Empathetic Acknowledgment – Recognize emotions and provide practical next steps to reassure patients, families and clinicians in distress.
Confident Responses to Tough Questions – Answer difficult questions with clarity and confidence, offering reassurance to everyone affected by a harm event.
Proactive Follow-Up – Ensure ongoing updates and transparent communication, keeping patients, families and clinicians informed every step of the way.
Structure Disclosure Conversations – Lead sensitive conversations with proven frameworks that prioritize transparency, empathy, and clear action plans.
What You’ll Gain:
Equip yourself and your team with the tools and strategies to navigate harm event conversations with confidence, including:
Tangible Skills & Practical Frameworks – Lead meaningful discussions with patients and families using proven approaches.
Clear Communication Strategies – Guidelines for what to say, specific tools for emotional situations, and tested templates and samples of communications with patients and families
Trust-Building Techniques – Maintain and restore relationships with patients and families through responsible transparency and empathy.
Actionable Tools – Templates and checklists are included in the curriculum.
Legal & Ethical Guidance – Navigate legal and ethical considerations to stay compliant with regulatory requirements.
Organizational Impact – Strengthen your organization’s communication protocols, aligning with best practices and regulatory standards.
CMHC Training for Organizations & Teams:
Learn to support your team in meeting compliance goals while creating a culture of transparency, compassion, and high patient satisfaction. Because this content is stronger when it’s shared across teams, we offer group discounts starting with three learners from the same organization. Larger groups are eligible for further discounts — contact us and let’s talk about what works best for your organization.
Course Format & Program Features
Learn at your own pace on your own schedule, with engaging, high-quality on-demand video modules designed for easy accessibility.
Here’s what you can expect:
Self-Paced, Online Learning:
Video modules, interactive quizzes, and a final certification assessment, totaling approximately 4.0 hours.
Experience-Based Lessons:
Drawn from over a decade of communications with harmed patients and families, we provide practical skills for handling emotionally charged conversations with confidence and care.
CME Credits:
This course includes 4.0 continuing medical education (CME) credits. Available for: Physicians, Nurses, Physician Assistants, Nurse Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists.
Downloadable Resources:
Checklists, templates, and communication guides for immediate use with patients and families.
Course Details
This self-paced online course offers 4.0 hours of engaging, high-quality video content for easy accessibility.
Learn at your own pace, on your own schedule, and build confidence in delivering clear, compassionate communication.
Upon completion, 4.0 CME credits are available for Physicians, Nurses, Physician Assistants, Nurse Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists.
Meet Your Instructor: Leilani Schweitzer
Included in the Training:
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In this module, we’ll take a closer look at why patients and families choose to take legal action after experiencing medical harm, and explore ways to meet their needs before it gets to that point. Research shows that lawsuits often stem from a lack of information, emotional distress, financial struggles, and the need for accountability and prevention. By providing clear explanations, sincere apologies, and fair compensation, healthcare professionals can help build trust, support healing, and lower the chances of litigation. This module highlights how strong communication and patient engagement can lead to meaningful resolution instead of legal battles.
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This module dives into the crucial conversations that happen after a medical harm event—disclosure discussions with patients and families. We’ll break down what must be shared, according to professional and regulatory guidelines, and why transparency matters. You and your team will learn practical strategies for approaching these conversations with honesty, empathy, and accountability, even when the details are unclear. We’ll also explore how to document disclosures properly, coordinate with your team, and ensure patients and families feel heard and supported. Most importantly, this module will help you shift from fear and hesitation to confident, compassionate communication when it matters most.
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In this module, we’ll look at the financial impact of harm events in healthcare and how to talk about it with patients and families. Research shows that open, honest conversations about financial concerns after medical errors can lower the risk of lawsuits and build trust. Addressing financial impacts—including lost income, medical bills, and government reimbursement requirements—is a critical part of responding to harm events. By handling these discussions with transparency, empathy, and clarity, healthcare professionals can support patients through the financial consequences of harm events while keeping trust and accountability at the center.
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This module focuses on a difficult conversation—explaining to patients and families when a review determines that the Standard of Care was met. These discussions can be challenging because they often mean there is no liability and, therefore, no financial compensation, which can be hard for patients or families to accept. This module covers best practices for communicating these findings with clarity and empathy, whether through a meeting or a letter. You and your team will learn how to prepare for these conversations, anticipate patient and family reactions, and ensure transparency throughout the review process. By handling these discussions with compassion and honesty, healthcare professionals can help families process difficult news while maintaining trust and accountability.
Testimonial
“The Certified Medical Harm Communicator course, exceeded my expectations. It is one of the most thoughtful, practical, and comprehensive programs I have encountered on communication after medical harm.
Leilani is an exceptional educator. She brings a rare combination of deep empathy for patients and families with a sophisticated understanding of the realities facing healthcare organizations and the vulnerability of healthcare professionals. I do not know of anyone who teaches this subject with greater balance, credibility, and compassion.
The course provides a clear framework for developing and implementing a Communication and Resolution Program (CRP) that is compassionate, systematic, objective, and legally sound. It demonstrates how organizations can respect both patients and families while also supporting the healthcare professionals involved, all while meeting ethical, legal, and regulatory expectations, including the CMS Patient Safety Structural Measures.
This content blends lived experience, professional expertise, and research. Participants learn how to conduct disclosure conversations, perform harm reviews, facilitate apology and resolution meetings, and sustain effective long-term CRPs. The content is practical, actionable, and immediately applicable in real-world healthcare settings.
Certification is earned through completion of the coursework and quizzes. The flexible format makes it ideal for both individuals and organizations, providing an efficient way to prepare clinicians, risk managers, patient safety professionals, executives, and insurers with a shared approach to communication and resolution. Although the course requires only about four hours to complete, I spread it over a week because I genuinely enjoyed it and found myself looking forward to each session.
Ultimately, this course provides far more than communication skills—it offers a roadmap for building a culture of transparency, accountability, healing, and trust while strengthening patient safety and reducing organizational risk. I highly recommend it to any healthcare organization committed to doing the right thing for patients, families, and healthcare professionals after medical harm..”
— Ellen Flynn, RN, MBA, JD
FAQs
What is the format of the CMHC course & how long does it take to complete?
The CMHC course is fully online and self-paced. It consists of short, digestible video modules. Broken up into modules, the course takes about 4.0 hours to complete and includes a final assessment for certification.
Is the course eligible for Continuing Medical Education credits?
Yes! The CMHC course is approved for 4.0 Continuing Medical Education credits. These credits are available to Physicians, Physician Assistants, Nurses, Nurse Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists,. The course is designed to meet the educational needs of a wide range of healthcare professionals involved in patient care and communication after harm events.
How much does the CMHC training cost?
The full course is $279 per learner. This includes access to the core content, and certification upon passing the final test. Discounts are available when three or more learners from the same institution register together—making it easy to train teams and promote a shared approach to communication after harm events. Please connect with us to discuss discounts for groups.
Who should take the Comms Corps CMHC training?
The CMHC training is designed for healthcare professionals involved in patient care and safety, including clinicians, risk managers, patient safety leaders, social workers, and malpractice insurers. Whether you're on the front lines or behind the scenes, the course will strengthen your skills in communicating effectively and compassionately after a harm event.
It’s also an ideal way to educate entire organizations—including leadership teams and boards—about best practices for responding to medical harm with transparency, empathy, and accountability.
Confident Communication:
Download our Checklist
DOWNLOAD YOUR FREE CHECKLIST
Download our practical guide to navigate difficult conversations with empathy, clarity, and confidence. This free checklist, when used alongside Certified Medical Harm Communicator program offers essential actions and reminders to support meaningful, compassionate engagement following an adverse event.
Join our community and download our Communication After Harm Checklist.