{"id":22589,"date":"2026-09-01T11:35:19","date_gmt":"2026-09-01T15:35:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/vipta\/?post_type=cheerspeers&p=22589"},"modified":"2026-09-01T11:35:19","modified_gmt":"2026-09-01T15:35:19","slug":"celebrating-virginias-al-cip-leaders","status":"publish","type":"cheerspeers","link":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/vipta\/cheerspeers\/celebrating-virginias-al-cip-leaders\/","title":{"rendered":"Celebrating Virginia’s AL-CIP Leaders"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Advanced Leadership Certification in Infection Prevention (AL-CIP) launched in 2025. Since then, 11 Virginia infection preventionists (IPs) have earned this advanced credential. We spoke with Jessica Fielek and Tracey Odachowski from Sentara, and Becky Lapian from Inova, about their experience and advice for future applicants.<\/p>\n

Why earn the AL-CIP?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Jessica Fielek said, \u201cI chose to pursue the AL-CIP certification because I believe it represents the culmination of the leadership and infection prevention work that many IPs perform every day, often without a great deal of recognition. The certification provides a unique opportunity to showcase the impact of our work, not only to the selection committee but also to our peers and organizations.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tracey Odachowski shared, \u201cBeing a new certification and an early recipient, I feel it demonstrates my commitment to infection prevention advancements, leadership, and professional influence.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lessons Learned<\/strong><\/p>\n

Becky Lapian said, \u201cThe most challenging part was figuring out how to fit my experience and evidence into the different domains and subdomains. Connecting each piece of evidence to the specific domains and then writing the rationale to clearly explain the connection took some thought. It really made me reflect on the breadth of my experience and the impact of the work I\u2019ve done.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her advice: \u201cGo for it! Don\u2019t underestimate the work you\u2019ve already done or the experience you\u2019ve gained as an IP. Take the time to really highlight your accomplishments and think about the impact of your work. It\u2019s a great opportunity to reflect on your growth and showcase what you bring to the profession.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jessica added, \u201cMy biggest piece of advice is to carefully review the AL-CIP handbook several times before you begin and take advantage of any informational webinars or educational sessions offered about the certification. Understanding the requirements and domains upfront can save a great deal of time as you begin selecting and organizing your portfolio evidence. I would also encourage applicants to focus on collecting strong evidence and clearly articulating their specific leadership role within each project. Many infection preventionists contribute to numerous successful initiatives, but it is important to demonstrate how you personally influenced the work, led change, or contributed to achieving the outcomes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Interested in earning your AL-CIP?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Review the AL-CIP Handbook <\/a><\/span><\/span>and access webinars<\/strong> to better understand requirements, organize your portfolio, and prepare a strong application.<\/p>\n

Get personalized support at any stage.<\/strong> Book a coaching session with a current AL-CIP through the VDH HAI\/AR Program\u2019s Infection Prevention Educator Boost Sessions<\/a><\/span><\/span>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":22590,"template":"","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"class_list":["post-22589","cheerspeers","type-cheerspeers","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"yoast_head":"\nCelebrating Virginia's AL-CIP Leaders - VIPTA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/vipta\/cheerspeers\/celebrating-virginias-al-cip-leaders\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Celebrating Virginia's AL-CIP Leaders - VIPTA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The Advanced Leadership Certification in Infection Prevention (AL-CIP) launched in 2025. Since then, 11 Virginia infection preventionists (IPs) have earned this advanced credential. We spoke with Jessica Fielek and Tracey […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/vipta\/cheerspeers\/celebrating-virginias-al-cip-leaders\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"VIPTA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/content\/uploads\/sites\/213\/VIPTA_Sept-26_Cheers_CBIC-final-live-04-2025-large_AL-CIP-large.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"116\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"160\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\\\/vipta\\\/cheerspeers\\\/celebrating-virginias-al-cip-leaders\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\\\/vipta\\\/cheerspeers\\\/celebrating-virginias-al-cip-leaders\\\/\",\"name\":\"Celebrating Virginia's AL-CIP Leaders - VIPTA\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\\\/vipta\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\\\/vipta\\\/cheerspeers\\\/celebrating-virginias-al-cip-leaders\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\\\/vipta\\\/cheerspeers\\\/celebrating-virginias-al-cip-leaders\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\\\/content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/213\\\/VIPTA_Sept-26_Cheers_CBIC-final-live-04-2025-large_AL-CIP-large.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-09-01T15:35:19+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\\\/vipta\\\/cheerspeers\\\/celebrating-virginias-al-cip-leaders\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\\\/vipta\\\/cheerspeers\\\/celebrating-virginias-al-cip-leaders\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\\\/vipta\\\/cheerspeers\\\/celebrating-virginias-al-cip-leaders\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\\\/content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/213\\\/VIPTA_Sept-26_Cheers_CBIC-final-live-04-2025-large_AL-CIP-large.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\\\/content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/213\\\/VIPTA_Sept-26_Cheers_CBIC-final-live-04-2025-large_AL-CIP-large.jpg\",\"width\":116,\"height\":160,\"caption\":\"AL-CIP Badge from CBIC\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\\\/vipta\\\/cheerspeers\\\/celebrating-virginias-al-cip-leaders\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\\\/vipta\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Celebrating Virginia’s AL-CIP Leaders\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\\\/vipta\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\\\/vipta\\\/\",\"name\":\"VIPTA\",\"description\":\"Virginia Infection Prevention and Control Training Alliance\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\\\/vipta\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Celebrating Virginia's AL-CIP Leaders - VIPTA","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/vipta\/cheerspeers\/celebrating-virginias-al-cip-leaders\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Celebrating Virginia's AL-CIP Leaders - VIPTA","og_description":"The Advanced Leadership Certification in Infection Prevention (AL-CIP) launched in 2025. Since then, 11 Virginia infection preventionists (IPs) have earned this advanced credential. We spoke with Jessica Fielek and Tracey […]","og_url":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/vipta\/cheerspeers\/celebrating-virginias-al-cip-leaders\/","og_site_name":"VIPTA","og_image":[{"width":116,"height":160,"url":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/content\/uploads\/sites\/213\/VIPTA_Sept-26_Cheers_CBIC-final-live-04-2025-large_AL-CIP-large.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/vipta\/cheerspeers\/celebrating-virginias-al-cip-leaders\/","url":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/vipta\/cheerspeers\/celebrating-virginias-al-cip-leaders\/","name":"Celebrating Virginia's AL-CIP Leaders - VIPTA","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/vipta\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/vipta\/cheerspeers\/celebrating-virginias-al-cip-leaders\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/vipta\/cheerspeers\/celebrating-virginias-al-cip-leaders\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/content\/uploads\/sites\/213\/VIPTA_Sept-26_Cheers_CBIC-final-live-04-2025-large_AL-CIP-large.jpg","datePublished":"2026-09-01T15:35:19+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/vipta\/cheerspeers\/celebrating-virginias-al-cip-leaders\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/vipta\/cheerspeers\/celebrating-virginias-al-cip-leaders\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/vipta\/cheerspeers\/celebrating-virginias-al-cip-leaders\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/content\/uploads\/sites\/213\/VIPTA_Sept-26_Cheers_CBIC-final-live-04-2025-large_AL-CIP-large.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/content\/uploads\/sites\/213\/VIPTA_Sept-26_Cheers_CBIC-final-live-04-2025-large_AL-CIP-large.jpg","width":116,"height":160,"caption":"AL-CIP Badge from CBIC"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/vipta\/cheerspeers\/celebrating-virginias-al-cip-leaders\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/vipta\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Celebrating Virginia’s AL-CIP Leaders"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/vipta\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/vipta\/","name":"VIPTA","description":"Virginia Infection Prevention and Control Training Alliance","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/vipta\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/vipta\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cheerspeers\/22589","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/vipta\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cheerspeers"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/vipta\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/cheerspeers"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/vipta\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/22590"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/vipta\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22589"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}