Removing Unnecessary Barriers to Health Care Food Service Certifications and Unlock Career Growth

When you combine the growth of the U.S. Baby Boomer/elderly population with longer life expectancies, one result is an increasing demand for assisted living healthcare facilities. While technology has helped to reshape where and how healthcare services are provided, the demand for facility-based care remains strong. Those demands also mean a strong need for essential support workers to aid these facilities and patients.

One key group of support workers is food services professionals. Serving countless unique and specialized meals around the clock, food service professionals are in high demand. But career advancement for these workers often depends on certification. In some cases, the certification process itself was creating unnecessary challenges. One organization found the certification process nearly impossible for skilled workers to advance. It determined that a few process changes could help eliminate obstacles and support workers in their career growth.    

Diagnosing the Symptoms  

Healthcare Services Group (HCSG) provides essential dining and nutrition support services for the healthcare and education industries. Over 45 years, HCSG has built a reputation for improving operational efficiency, ensuring regulatory compliance and enhancing financial outcomes for its clients. A key pillar of its success is a strong commitment to employee training and professional development, equipping team members with the skills and knowledge needed to deliver exceptional service.

However, when it came to certifying its workforce for Food Service Manager (FSM) and Long-Term Care Food Service Manager (LTC FSM) roles, HCSG faced significant challenges. Existing certification options were unnecessarily complex. As a result, passing rates among HCSG employees were low, leading to increased assessment costs and frustration among candidates. 

To address the challenges in training, upskilling and certifying its food service workforce, HCSG established eLuminate, an independent certification body dedicated to enhancing career opportunities within the food service industry. As a wholly owned subsidiary of HCSG, eLuminate was designed to fairly and impartially assess candidates while ensuring they possess the necessary skills and knowledge to excel in their roles.

And, eLuminate certifies any qualified individual who applies and passes the requisite exam—whether they work for HCSG or not. By focusing on the skills essential to food service managers, eLuminate provides a direct and practical pathway to career advancement for all individuals in the industry.

By critically reviewing CMS guidelines, eLuminate removed content that was only relevant to registered dietitians, and streamlined exams to assess only the knowledge and skills required for food service managers.

“With the pre-existing certification options, HCSG employees had an abysmal pass rate. We were just flushing money down the toilet. They were failing the exam because of the exact knowledge they didn’t need—medical nutrition therapy. That’s the job of a registered dietitian, not a food service manager,” said Jeannie Fissinger, Senior VP, Policy & Training Development for HCSG.

eLuminate also ensures that its accredited certifications align with federal regulations, particularly those set by The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). The certifications meet the requirements of 42 CFR §483.60(a)(2)(i)(B)&(C), ensuring compliance with federal and state regulations while making the process more accessible for professionals seeking to advance their careers.

Creating a Treatment Plan  

Because everyone does not have the opportunity to pursue higher education, eLuminate offers two accredited certification exams to those committed to pursuing career advancement:

• Food Service Manager Exam (FSM) – Assesses knowledge and skills in nutrition, food safety and management in alignment with the latest Food Code and industry standards.
• Long-Term Care Food Service Manager Exam (LTC-FSM) – Addresses the more stringent regulations specific to food service managers in long-term care facilities, ensuring compliance with CMS and other regulatory bodies. Successful completion of the FSM Exam is a prerequisite for the LTC-FSM Exam.

To create a seamless and accessible certification experience for candidates, eLuminate integrated proctoring, testing and digital credentialing into its ecosystem which incorporates:

• Honorlock for proctoring, Caveon for assessment delivery, Accredible for digital credentials and LearnUpon for an (LMS & eCommerce)

This seamless integration allows candidates to register, test and receive credentials all within one ecosystem, eliminating friction points that previously caused delays and confusion. This tech-driven approach ensures that candidates complete their certification exams online, anytime, with live virtual proctoring that provides both security and convenience. eLuminate’s on-demand digital exam platform removes unnecessary barriers, making the certification process efficient, accessible and user-friendly.

Key benefits include:

·         Quick and convenient three-year certifications

·         Expanded career advancement opportunities

·         Easily verified and shareable digital credentials

·         Reduced exam fees for employers and time costs for employees

Accredited by the ANSI National Accreditation Board Personnel Certification body, eLuminate’s certifications meet the ISO/IEC 17024 standard and fulfill the regulatory management component required in most U.S. states.

Making Online Certification Accessible

Ease of use with the technology was a critical factor. Fissinger said, “The people in food service aren’t typically tech-savvy. They tend to be more hands-on, so being comfortable taking exams online is essential.”

One major issue was device accessibility. The previous proctoring platform did not support low-cost Chromebooks, disproportionately impacted lower-income individuals who couldn’t afford expensive laptops, creating a financial barrier to career advancement. Fissinger added, “If you have to have a laptop to get certified, that’s a lot of money, period. It’s a barrier for people that have lower income.”

With its new system, eLuminate was able to eliminate these obstacles. Honorlock fully supports Chromebooks, which are widely available in HCSG facilities and are the most affordable option for many test takers. The switch to Honorlock led to immediate success, with:

·         562 successful exams proctored in just a few months

·         99%+ exam initiation success rate

·         Successful completion of exams in 43 states

Removing Language Barriers

Language barriers were another critical challenge. Many test takers struggled to understand verbal directions from the previous company’s proctors and support agents, particularly when delivered with strong accents, as was typical. Without written instructions to follow, candidates were left confused and frustrated.

Elizabeth Lydon, Credentials Coordinator of eLuminatesaid, “One of the biggest hurdles that we had was that proctor and support interactions were not written, only spoken. Testers didn’t understand what the proctor was saying most of the time, and the proctor would just repeat the sentence over and over.”

Honorlock solved this by providing step-by-step written prompts, allowing candidates to read, follow and translate instructions in real time. A chat function enables instant guidance and multi-language support, ensuring candidates can quickly resolve any issues. Lydon explains,

“Honorlock has prompts that show the user exactly how to complete each step. I watch exam session recordings every month, and I can see that the response time is a lot better. The user gets the tools to fix any issues on their own.”

Additionally, Honorlock offers real-time multilingual translation support in over 50 languages, including Spanish, Chinese (Simplified & Traditional), French, German, Arabic, Hindi and more. The examples below illustrate this feature in Spanish and French. This flexibility drastically improved the test-taking experience and reduced unnecessary delays.

By ensuring access and eliminating unnecessary barriers, HCSC and eLuminate are not just helping food service professionals earn certifications, they are creating life-changing career opportunities.