- I would like to obtain the CCRN certification, it stands for Critical Care Registered Nurse and it is sponsored by the AACN. There is an exam to take to be certified. What is stopping me from obtaining this? I have worked in very small places and I have no experience with pulmonary artery catheters and very critical situations. I don’t feel like I have the knowledge in order to pass the exam. As a travel nurse it could give me a competitive edge over another travel nurse, but I have no problems landing contracts. I would be afraid that a location would think, oh she has her CCRN she has experience with fresh post op CABG patients. Yes, I would know the theoretical stuff, but I don’t have practical experience. If I did study hard for it and obtain certification it would be a point of pride and marketability. I think it would make me a better nurse, studying for the exam and having that extra knowledge. However, I plan to go straight into a master’s program and be out of the critical care world after that so it would be frivolous at this point.
- I think that specialty certification helps the nursing profession as a whole have more credibility in the eyes of the public and other professions. As a coworker I would consider someone with specialty certification a resource for practice. If I had a question, I would go to them because I know that they have had experience and knowledge.
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I think the more knowledge you gain weather it is theoretical or practical is valuable. But I do agree I would want some practical time before I started taking care of a fresh CABG. I learned more during practical then I did any other time in nursing school. I am a real hands on learner. Good luck with your master program.
As the cartoons used to say “knowledge is power.” Yes, knowledge of cardiac output, index, and pulmonary artery pressures would be valuable knowledge even though I would have no way to monitor them. Understanding the ramifications of increased pulmonary artery pressure would help me to clinically identify patients in practice, and help with treatment of chronic CHF or PH patients once I am an APRN. That is true. Thank you for your comment, JM. I recently decided to just take the plunge and do a DNP program instead. What’s another year anyway? Especially if that year helps me to better serve patients and reduce errors? Absolutely. Good luck with your future endeavors as well.
I agree that the certification holds value in the knowledge required to obtain it. The exam is challenging and it does take a solid knowledge base of critical care understanding to pass. It would provide additional understanding to help you progress in your career path. I also thinks its not a bad Idea pursing a DNP program as I believe there is a push for this to become the standard in the future. Best of luck on your educational journey.
True. You definitely wouldn’t want to overly market yourself and get yourself in a situation where whoever hired you would expect you to know the ins and outs of various critical situations that you are not familiar with like you pointed out above. I do see the necessity in having certifications and making one’s self more marketable to not only employers, but also patients.