Certified Health Care Environmental Services Technician (CHEST) Program Information

Policies & Fees

*Registration is not considered complete if you select the inappropriate payment category. Additional payment may be required to complete the registration.

Payments

Credit card payment must be submitted at the time of registration to reserve your spot in the workshop. Registrations must be made using the registrant's email and contact information.

*Credit card is the only accepted form of payment. 

Cancellations and Refunds

More than 15 business days prior to the start of the Program: Please send your cancellation request to ahe@aha.org. Your refund will be subject to a $300 cancellation fee.

15 business days or fewer prior to the start of the Program: No refund or credit will be issued.

No credits, substitutions, or transfers will be permitted under any circumstance.

Attendance and Credits

• Technicians who miss two hours or more of the entire program will not be eligible to sit for the technician CHEST Exam. Technicians who fulfill the attendance requirement will be eligible to sit for the CHEST Exam at a time designated by the T-CHEST.
• Trainers who miss more than 2 hours of the Train-the-Trainer (TTT) program will not be eligible to complete the TTT course or become designated as a trainer until the missed portion is made up at a later AHE offering. This makeup session will require a nominal fee for processing and administration purposes.
• Technicians that miss more than 2 hours of a session will need to make up the time with the trainer OR wait until the trainer's next session.
• CHESPs may wish to take the TTT only for the purpose of receiving the 24 hours of CPE toward renewal of CHESP (45 hours over 3 years) OR as a full professional refresh/review of the basic practices and protocols of health care environmental services.

Trainer Agreement and Ethics Statement

In an effort to minimize risk, AHA and AHE are requiring all trainers to sign an agreement and ethics statement that will protect the integrity and viability of the CHEST program. Following are the primary terms of the agreement: Trainers must purchase all books through AHE and may not purchase books for resale purposes. Trainers cannot contract with organizations outside their health care facility to train others. Trainers cannot sell their training services. Trainers are required to update their CHEST certification records annually.

CHEST Renewal Process

Environmental services technicians who have earned their CHEST must submit a renewal form every three (3) years along with a renewal application form. You can confirm your expiration date by reviewing the Current List of CHEST Certificants.

Option One: Continuing Education

Indicate on the Renewal Application Form if you have completed 15 hours of continuing education (including relevant in-service classes) within the past three (3) years. For this renewal cycle only, you do not have to submit a list of your continuing education classes.

Option Two: Successful CHEST Re-examination

Renewal by this option requires re-taking and passing the CHEST Examination no more than one (1) year prior to certification expiration date.

You should first complete a Renewal Application Form and submit it to AHE, along with your payment. After the application is processed, AHE will notify your facility of the test request and they will get in touch with you to schedule the test.

Option Three: Facility Sponsorship

This option is available to facilities wishing to pay for their CHEST certificants’ renewal fees. CHESTs should check with their T-CHEST or manager to find out if this is an option. The facility must send a completed CHEST Renewal Log using one of the following methods:

• To pay via credit card, fax the completed CHEST Renewal Log with credit card payment to 312-276-8015. AHE cannot accept credit card payments via email.
• To be invoiced, send an email requesting an invoice with the completed CHEST Renewal Log attached to CHEST@aha.org.

Renewal by this option requires each CHEST to complete 15 hours of continuing education within the past three (3) years. For this renewal cycle only, a list of continuing education classes does not need to be submitted. 

CHEST Renewal

CHESTs who successfully renew their certification will receive their new certificates within 4-6 weeks of application processing. CHESTs who re-take and pass the exam should allow 4-6 weeks from the date of the exam to receive their certificate.

Please contact us at CHEST@aha.org if you have any questions.

Key Resources

• AHE CHEST Renewal Application Form