Working in the ED is a challenging environment, you have to be ready to adapt to nearly any kind of possible patient and situation imaginable. In order to prepare for this challenge, ED nurses are required to be proficient in several diverse areas of nursing. A certification I am working to test for is my Certified emergency nurse certification. The CEN certification is an exam prepared by the board of certification for emergency nursing which is a national organization which focuses exclusively on emergency and trauma nursing. Preparing for the exam and keeping up with the resources provided to certified nurses provides you with a broad range of knowledge and skills that the top emergency care nurse administrators in the country are identifying as essential.
Nursing is such a diverse field that specialty certifications are almost a necessity. One RN could have all of their background in minimum data set (MDS) coordination and decide to go become a pediatric oncology nurse. The way we as RNs can prepare and keep ourselves up to date with current information in our field is through our specialty certification testing body. With the role of the RN fast expanding we need more than just the basic competencies of our basic RN licensure to handle the responsibilities of many specialties of nursing care.
You make a good point that certifications help us keep up with the current information. Healthcare is very rapidly changing and specialty certifications and the associations that you can join help tremendously to role out the latest information and organize it in an easy to find and easy to follow manner.
I also agree with the statement that certifications are almost necessary. Just like mentioned, there are so many fields you can go into in nursing. A certification is just a paper form to validate you are proficient in that area. I am sure there are many nurses who are not certified and are proficient, but it is important to stay on top of changes in healthcare.
Certifications are great and fantastic, I have mixed feelings on them. 1. They are expensive and in my region not many hospitals will pay for them or compensate nurses with an increase in pay. 2. You have to take time out of your busy schedule to study and take the test, therefore if you have to work test day you have to take PTO or go without that income since most hospitals here do not pay or reimburse for class/test time. 3. I think that we certifications are great and keep us up to date on current practices, I just wish more facilities would pay for it.
As I have previously mentioned I am currently not employed, I used to work in surgery as an RN circulator and I would like to return to that same type of position. I have plans to work on an O.R. certification this year. This would be of great value in my practice because not only would it boost my confidence in the department that I work, but also it would expand my knowledge, competence, and skills. Not only would I like to do this for myself but also for my patients. As nurses, we are accountable for our practice. I believe achieving a certification in my specialty area would lead me one step further to providing better patient care and would allow me to grow as a nurse.
A certification is not only a good thing for the professional but also the nursing profession. It leads to safer patient care. On top of this, continued education allows nurses to meet the demands of the changing healthcare practice. “Staff members are a health care organization’s greatest resource; support of those staff in developing and maintaining competencies that lead to safe patient care should be a high priority” (Hagler & Wilson, 2013, p.168). Changes in healthcare are constantly made, as nurses we should further our education and keep up with the changing healthcare system.
Hagler, D., PhD, & Wilson, R., PhD. (2013). Designing Nursing Staff Competency Assessment Using Simulation. ELSEVIER, 32(4), 165-169. doi:doi-org.ezproxy.fhsu.edu/10.1016/j.jradnu.2013.10.001
I agree that now in the ever changing field of healthcare we as RN’s need more than just the basic skill set of nursing. It is awesome that in our profession we have that ability to be able to obtain any type of specialty certification we want and I believe that we should take advantage of that, especially if your facility offers that for you! I think having a specialty is a great accomplishment and will only help you in the future if you decide to further your education in your area of expertise.