Chambers set schedules

■ The Soldotna Chamber of Commerce meets at noon today at Froso’s Restaurant. A presentation from Kenai Peninsula United Way Executive Director Lisa Roberts is planned. RSVP to 262-9814. At noon on Nov. 18, the chamber will have a spotlight on local businesses at Froso’s.

■ The Kenai Chamber of Commerce next meets at noon Nov. 19 at the Kenai Visitors Center. Joe LoSciuto, president of ASRC Energy Services Marine Support, will give a presentation on the refurbishment of Rig Tenders Marine Terminal, additional capabilities and services of Marine Support. RSVP to 283-1991.

Central Peninsula Hospital awarded ‘A’ by Hospital Safety Score

Central Peninsula Hospital was honored with an “A” grade in the Fall 2014 Hospital Safety Score, which rates how well hospitals protect patients from errors, injuries and infections. The Hospital Safety Score is compiled under the guidance of the nation’s leading experts on patient safety and is administered by The Leapfrog Group, an independent industry watchdog. The first and only hospital safety rating to be peer‐reviewed in the Journal of Patient Safety, the Score is free to the public and designed to give consumers information they can use to protect themselves and their families when facing a hospital stay.

“This is the fourth year in a row that Central Peninsula Hospital received an ‘A’ grade from Leapfrog, it is also the fourth year in a row that CPH is the only hospital in Alaska to receive an ‘A’ grade,” said Rick Davis, CEO of Central Peninsula Hospital.

CPGH, Inc., Board President Trena Richardson added, “Our physicians and employees should be extremely proud of the ‘A’ grade as it demonstrates their commitment to patient safety and the care of members of our community.”

Developed under the guidance of Leapfrog’s Blue Ribbon Expert Panel, the Hospital Safety Score uses 28 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to produce a single “A,” “B,” “C,” “D,” or “F” score representing a hospital’s overall capacity to keep patients safe from preventable harm. More than 2,500 U.S. general hospitals were assigned scores in fall 2014, with about 31‐percent receiving an “A” grade. The Hospital Safety Score is fully transparent, with a full analysis of the data and methodology used in determining grades available online at www.hospitalsafetyscore.org.

Job Center hosts training

The following job skills workshops will be offered at the Peninsula Job Center the week of Nov. 17:

Monday, Nov. 17 — 9:30 a.m., ALEXsys Job Leads; 10:30 a.m., Introduction to ALEXsys and the Job Center; 2 p.m., Resume Writing Workshop

Tuesday, Nov. 18 — 10:30 a.m., Career Ready 101 Lab; 1 p.m., GED Orientation

Wednesday, Nov. 19 — 9 a.m., WorkKeys® Testing

Thursday, Nov. 20 — 10:30 a.m., Interviewing Skills Workshop

Friday, Nov. 21 — No workshops offered

All workshop are free of charge to the public

Those interested in attending any workshops offered at the Peninsula Job Center can reserve space by clicking on the “Schedule Workshops” option located on the main screen in your ALEXsys account (www.jobs.alaska.gov ), call 335-3010, or visit the job center located in Kenai at 11312 Kenai Spur Hwy., Suite #2. Business hours are Monday – Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. excluding state and federal holidays.

Business workshops offered

Small business workshops will be offered weekly in Fairbanks and by videoconference in Soldotna. The series is hosted by the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service and the UAF Community and Technical College.

Kathryn Dodge, Extension economic development specialist, said the workshops will offer guidance to small business owners interested in starting or expanding their businesses. Participants may attend one or all of the workshops. The topics include:

■ How to get a small business loan, 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Nov. 13

Each class costs $25. Register online at http://bit.ly/ces-workshops. See more information about the classes and videoconference locations at www.uaf.edu/ces. Instructors will include Fairbanks attorney John Burns; accountant Paul Robinson; Scott Swingle of the Small Business Administration; Russ Talvi of the Alaska Small Business Development Center; Paul Bauer of the Spirit of Alaska Federal Credit Union; and Adam Krynicki of the UAF Office of Intellectual Property and Commercialization.

For more information, contact Dodge at 474-6497 or kdodge@alaska.edu.

SBA accepting Small Business Week Award Nominations

The U.S. Small Business Administration – Alaska district office has announced the opening of SBA’s online portal and is ready to accept nominations for its 2015 National Small Business Week Awards, including the annual Small Business Person of the Year award.

SBA has been following the mantra – Smart, Bold and Accessible in the way the agency conducts business. This is now the third year SBA has been using the online portal submission process, a great and smart improvement from years past. The improved dedicated web portal http://awards.sba.gov provides all the guidelines and has made it much easier to submit and track submissions of nominees for National Small Business Week.

All nominations must be submitted online, postmarked or hand delivered to the SBA no later than 3 p.m. EST, Jan. 5, 2015. In addition to the portal, nominations can also be sent directly to SBA’s Alaska District Office. For contact information and other District Office information visit online at www.sba.gov/ak, call 800-755-7034 or visit in person at 420 L Street, Suite 300, Anchorage, Alaska.

What’s new in your business?

Have you opened a new business, moved to a new location, hired a new person or promoted an employee?

Send us your information at news@peninsulaclarion.com, fax it to 907-283-3299, or drop it by the Clarion at 150 Trading Bay in Kenai. Questions? Call 907-335-1251.

Business announcements may be submitted to news@peninsulaclarion.com.