I'm a project manager at a hospital system and my company is pushing for me to get the CHC within 18 months. I've been in healthcare construction for six years so I know the field, but I've never sat for a formal exam like this and I'm not sure how to structure the preparation.
Looking at the content outline, the areas I'm least confident in are infection control risk assessment and the FGI guidelines sections. My day-to-day work hits those topics but more from a contractor perspective than an exam perspective. I've heard the questions can be pretty scenario-based, which I actually prefer over pure recall.
I started doing a CHC practice test last week just to baseline myself and I'm scoring around 58%, which is humbling. Not panicking yet since I have time, but it tells me I need to be more systematic than just reading through the study guide once.
Anyone who's gone through it: was 12-16 weeks of dedicated prep enough, or did you feel like you needed longer? I can realistically do about an hour a day during the week.
I did 14 weeks at about 1.5 hours per day and passed on the first try with a comfortable margin. The scenario-based questions are genuinely tricky because two answers always seem right — you need to think like a certifying body, not like a working PM.
The ICRA section is weighted heavily. I'd spend at least 20% of your prep time there. Class E vs. Class F distinctions, traffic pattern controls, barrier types — know those cold.
FGI 2018 vs. FGI 2022 differences tripped me up. Make sure you know which version the exam is currently testing against — check the official CHC site because it changes periodically.
Starting at 58% with 12+ weeks to go is fine. I was at 55% at week three and passed at exam date. The practice questions build pattern recognition faster than reading does.