SEATTLE, Oct. 17, 2012 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Open Doors
Organization (ODO), the Chicago-based non-profit, today announced the
launch of the first-ever Aviation Access Certification Program, designed
to raise the quality of and standardize service by airline wheelchair
service employees nationwide. Eric Lipp, executive director, introduced
the new program at ODO's fourth biennial Universal Access in Airports
Conference, being held October 16-18 in Seattle, Washington.
Airport
wheelchair service employees who take this program will attain
certification as highly qualified and trained professionals and be
entitled to wear a special patch with the ODO logo. As certified
professionals, they will help customers have a better experience through
proper understanding of safe and courteous wheelchair assistance,
thereby achieving higher customer satisfaction. They will also
understand and be able to properly meet the needs of customers with
sensory and cognitive disabilities as well as those of older travelers
who may have multiple needs.
"Our aim in creating this new
training and certification program," Mr. Lipp said, "is to help these
employees do a better, safer job and to realize how valuable their
services are, thereby enhancing the quality and experience for both
customers and employees. Now there will be a gold standard that includes
training that was developed by people with disabilities for people with
disabilities."
The overall objectives of the Aviation Access Certification Program are to:
Train to provide high quality customer service
Utilize the human element of customers with disabilities in training
Emphasis safety as a key tenet
Minimize out of service training time
Minimize additional training hours and costs
Reduce customer service complaints
There will be two Certification Programs.
Initial Certification Program, ready for delivery in January 2013.
Recurrent Certification Program, ready for delivery in 2014.
Each
Certification Program will have two versions: Certified Access Provider
and Certified Access Trainer. Open Doors Organization will also launch a
Certified Transfer Specialist Program for employees who specialize in
the safe assistance and lifting of customers between wheelchairs,
boarding chairs and airplane seats by mid-2013.
These training
programs will incorporate people with disabilities in course
development, specially-created video clips and also as trainers in the
Certified Access Trainer Program. They will enhance and largely replace
the training that is currently provided by individual companies.
Open
Doors Organization, a 501(c)3 non-profit based in Chicago, is dedicated
to opening doors for people with disabilities in travel and tourism.
Best known for its groundbreaking research on the disability travel
market, ODO has developed and delivered successful training programs and
videos for not only the transportation industry--airports, airlines,
trains, motorcoach companies and cruise lines--but also hotels,
restaurants and cultural institutions. Please visit the ODO website,
opendoorsnfp.org, for full details or call 773.388.8839.
Contact: Eric Lipp, 773.388.8839, ericlipp@opendoorsnfp.org
SOURCE Open Doors Organization
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