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On this page, training for:
County vital records offices
Recorded office hours
Training for new vital records professionals
Funeral directors and staff
Hospital birth registrars
Medical certifiers and staff

County vital records offices

Confidence at the Counter

MDH's Office of Vital Records (OVR) is offering in-person trainings around the state for county vital records staff who provide customer service or who haven't attended other trainings. The sessions will focus on preparing attendees to meet customers' vital records needs while following policies and procedures. Learn new information, get tips, and boost your confidence!

OVR subject matter experts will lead the trainings, facilitate discussions, direct small group activities, and provide opportunities for networking. The sessions will help attendees:

Understand the role and responsibilities of OVR and local issuance offices.
Know how to navigate the MDH website and find resources, tools, and help.
Fulfill requests in accordance with law.
Understand policies and standard procedures that support the statewide vital records system.

To register, email Dylan Slivik (dylan.slivik@state.mn.us) with the date and location of the session you plan to attend. Dylan will confirm your registration and provide additional information, including venue details. There is no fee to attend. Materials and refreshments will be provided. Walk-ins are welcome.

All sessions are from 1:00 PM to 4:00 p.m. Choose one:

Mahnomen, September 19, 2023
Mahnomen City Fire Hall meeting room, 124 S Main St., Mahnomen, MN 56557
Grand Rapids, September 20, 2023
Itasca County board room #121, 123 NE 4th St., Grand Rapids, MN 55744
St. Cloud, September 21, 2023
St. Cloud Great River Regional Library, Bremer Room, 1300 W St. Germain St., St. Cloud, MN 56301
Redwood Falls, September 26, 2023
Redwood Falls Government Center, 403 S Mill St., Redwood Falls, MN 56283
Owatonna, September 27, 2023
Owatonna Public Utilities, Morehouse Room, 208 S Walnut Ave., Owatonna, MN 55060

Office hours

Office hours provide local vital records professionals an opportunity to learn more about a featured topic, ask questions, and share information. Each session includes topic presentations, resources, and discussion. Every session reserves time for open forum. New and experienced staff are invited to participate. Send ideas for Office Hours topics to health.vitalrecords@state.mn.us.

Recorded office hours

Acceptable ID (YouTube) October 20, 2021

Adoptions and Other Replaced Records (YouTube) June 22, 2022

Death Record Amendments (YouTube) February 16, 2022

Eligibility/Tangible Interest (YouTube) January 19, 2022

Helping Customers with Amendments (YouTube) November, 17 2022

Historical Vital Records (YouTube) August 17, 2022

Issuing specialty certificates (YouTube) January 18, 2023

MACO pre-session training - Recap (YouTube) March 2023

Non-family eligible relationships (YouTube) June 2023

Parental Notices (YouTube) November 17, 2021

Partner Processes (YouTube) October 19, 2022

Paternity (YouTube) May 18, 2022

Security Paper Management and Reconciliation (YouTube) April 20, 2022

Training for new vital records professionals

Online training is available for county vital records professionals who are new to vital records. Four recorded learning sessions help local issuance staff get started in their important role. The brief sessions provide new staff with basic information about vital records, the statewide electronic system Minnesota Registration and Certification, and issuing birth and death certificates. Each session shows resources available for the learner and links to recorded “Office Hours” training sessions which cover the specific relevant topics in greater detail.

Part 1 – Welcome to Vital Records – introduces Minnesota Statutes and Administrative rules, the Office of Vital Records, security, certificate eligibility and public/confidential record types.

Part 2 – Operations – highlights daily tasks and processes and explains the difference between record corrections and amendments and different certificates and documents.

Part 3 – Demonstration (1) in the Minnesota Registration and Certification (MR&C) System Learners will observe searching for records, creating customer service requests, and issuing certificates and see some of the resources available to county vital record office staff members.

Part 4 – Demonstration (2) in the Minnesota Registration and Certification (MR&C) System Learners will observe searching for records, creating customer service requests, and issuing certificates and see some of the resources available to county vital record office staff members.

Part 5 – Self-directed exploration in the MR&CTRAIN system – Special access to the vital records database training system, an exact duplicate of MR&C System, to allow vital records professionals to practice using fictitious data and records. New staff wishing to try-out the system must complete a County Vital Records Office User Agreement (PDF) (please write “MR&CTRAIN” at the top of the form) to gain temporary access.

Test your knowledge

Use our Training checklist and quiz for new county vital records employees (PDF) to ensure you've done the recommended initial trainings and understand key vital records principles.

Funeral directors and staff training

Death registration 101 (YouTube) – Information about registering a death record for new Minnesota funeral home staff members. The presentation includes a demonstration in the online Minnesota Registration and Certification system.

Hospital birth registrar training

Office hours

Office hours provide birth registrars with a virtual opportunity for both new and experienced staff to learn more about a featured topic, ask questions, and share information. Each session includes topic presentations, resources, and open forum discussion.

Recorded office hours

Health information on birth records (YouTube) June 2023

Registering fetal and neonatal deaths (YouTube) April 2023

Online training

Applying Best Practices for Reporting Medical and Health Information on Birth Certificates is a one-hour course for created by the CDC National Center for Health Statistics and the National Association for Public Health Statistics and Information Systems. The course is for birth registrars and health professionals who supply medical/health information for birth certificates or reports of fetal death.

The course

Explains the importance of reporting birth record and fetal death information
Describes how birth registrars and clinicians can improve maternal and infant health data
Names resources available to aid birth registrars and clinicians
Tests what the student learned about birth and fetal death registration
Offers continuing education credits (CMEs, CNEs, CEUs, CPHs). Certificates are available for those who successfully complete the course.

Birth registration 101

Birth 101 is a virtual training class for hospital birth registrars and other staff who are new to vital records and who collect data, establish parentage, and register births in the Minnesota Registration and Certification (MR&C) system. Staff from the Office of Vital Records (OVR) at the Minnesota Department of Health and the Division of Child Support (CSD) at the Minnesota Department of Human Services lead the live interactive session. Successful completion of the session
meets state requirements for MR&C security and training.

Upon completion, participants will be able to: