CNA Certification

Some say that Merry Little romanticizes the birth experience, but she doesn’t think so. She is simply enthusiastic about the whole process. Little, who has dedicated much time and effort to developing the first CNA Certification Exam in Perinatal Nursing, believes a positive birth experience bodes well for both the mom and child for years to come. “We need to see women not only as moms in labor, but as women who are having children and this is the course they need to go through to get to the other end.”

A self-professed baby lover, Little strongly believes women must feel cared for, nurtured and involved during the birth process. Research supports, says Little, that if women feel involved in the decision-making of birth they rate the experience more positively.

While this involvement has improved over the last few years, Little says it’s still not where it should be. More attention needs to be paid to building women’s confidence and knowledge.

“I look to see the strength that women have when they give birth. It concerns me that I see so many women coming into the birth experience so frightened. It is such a positive experience I wonder how I can build their confidence so that they can handle it and think what a wonderful job they did.”

She wants women to look back and feel proud about what they accomplished. Little also enjoys the feeling of accomplishment: “I’ve learned something with every birth I’ve ever seen.”

When originally asked to be part of the exam development process, Little was a bit unsure of how to proceed. But with the help of various lists of perinatal nurses from across the country and e-mail technology, Little was able to hit the road to exam development running.

Little was persuaded to pursue the task by her mentor, Karen McKinnon, Chairperson of the Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses – Canada (AWHONN – Canada). The opportunity to make such a unique contribution to her profession was too good to turn down.

The time frame turned out to be miraculously short – from the first teleconference in October 1998 to the submitted proposal in June 1999 to March 2000, when the first exam will be administered. Approximately 50 hard-working people volunteered to get the exam finalized on time. Little adds that CNA staff was dedicated to getting the exam off the ground as well. For example, with the help of Lyne Marcil, Test Consultant, standards were written in three days.

Little, a clinical case coordinator for the maternal/infant program at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto, hopes the creation of a Canadian certification exam in perinatal nursing will help to increase membership in AWOHNN – Canada. With a current membership of approximately 400, the association is confident the exam will be beneficial in recruiting members from the 12,000 perinatal nurses across Canada.

A survey conducted by AWOHNN – Canada earlier this year indicates that up to 8,000 perinatal nurses would be interested in taking the exam at some point in their careers. Little firmly believes that certification is beneficial for any nursing specialty, and especially beneficial for the individual nurse. “Certification tells a lot about you as a nurse and as a professional. And more and more employers are asking for certification credentials,” she says.

Little feels good about the future of perinatal nursing. “Perinatal nursing can excel in bringing women into motherhood, or in the case of fathers, into parenthood. As perinatal nurses, we can help establish a sense of confidence throughout the experience.”

The only pitfalls in reaching the confidence-building goal, according to Little, is the trend to focus on technology and the fragmentation of care. Technology must be used appropriately says Little. She also believes the move to single room maternity care is a step in the right direction; a direction toward a blending of care and skills. Again, to Little it’s a matter of seeing the whole picture and appreciating how the birth process is connected with the rest of the family’s future.

NETWORK NORTH The Community Mental Health Group is the first recipient of the CNA Certification Program’s Employer Recognition Award.

The award was established to recognize employers and individual champions of the CNA Certification Program through support and recognition of CNA certified nurses.

In her letter of nomination, Discharge Planning Nurse for Network North, Elizabeth Storie, wrote: “We believe that from the first opportunity presented in 1995 to achieve CNA certification in Psychiatric/Mental Health Nursing, our facility has provided financial support and any other resources that the nurses felt they required to prepare to write the exam. They continue to recognize CNA certification as a qualification for nursing positions.”

NETWORK NORTH recognizes the achievement of CNA certification through announcements in the agency newsletter and at both the Professional Disciplines Committee and the Nursing Disciplines Committee levels. After the first exam was written in 1995, the agency suggested an article on CNA certification, which was published in the local newspaper, The Sudbury Star.

In terms of examination preparation, the services of a nurse educator at the facility was made available to assist in organizing study groups as requested by the nurses.

Committed to its policy of having all eligible nursing staff achieve certification, NETWORK NORTH financially supports nurses taking the CNA certification exams by covering the exam costs. Job descriptions and job postings also confirm the agency’s recognition of certification as a necessary qualification.

The agency, which has 44 adult and 12 pediatric beds in addition to offering a community clinic outreach program, an addiction service, two detox centres and a developmental clinical service, encourages all nursing staff when hired to become certified as soon as they are eligible. Approximately 25 per cent of the present RN staff are already certified. The 14 psychiatrists on staff are also very supportive of the nursing certification program.

“We’re a specialty hospital in mental health and psychiatry, that’s what we do for a living and certification gives the nurses the credential to work here,” says Patricia Morris, Assistant Executive Director of NETWORK NORTH. “We’re glad you came up with the program.”

NETWORK NORTH will continue to support the CNA Certification Program. They recently stated that they will pay the CNA member portion of those nurses who require recertification. Nurses who are not CNA members must pay the difference between the two fees.

In describing her facility’s dedication to the program Morris adds, “I’m going to do this as long as CNA keeps offering the exam and I have nurses that need to take it. We need the standards set.”

Award nomination forms for the next Employer Recognition Award will be accepted until 31 March 2000. Nominations can be made by a CNA certified nurse or group of CNA certified nurses employed by the same employer. Selection of the award recipient will be made by the CNA Council on Certification. Presentation of the 1999 and 2000 Employer Recognition Award will take place at CNA’s Biennial Convention (18-21 June 2000) in Vancouver.

• McMaster University
• University of Windsor
• University of Manitoba
• University of Saskatchewan
• University of Alberta
• University of Calgary
• University of British Columbia
  

The year 2000 marks a significant change to the content of the Critical Care Certification Examination – the creation of an all adult critical care content for the examination. The Canadian Association of Critical Care Nurses (CACCN) spent considerable time in bringing this change about in an effort to move certification in the right direction for their specialty.

Although a separate pediatric certification exam will not be available in 2000, CACCN will continue to work with CNA to develop a pediatric critical care certification component for the future.

CACCN’s formal link on CNA’s Critical Care Certification Committee, Brenda Morgan, worked closely with CNA over the past year to facilitate the exam changes. The initial step began in the fall of 1998 as CACCN, along with a number of critical care nurses from across Canada, worked to revise the blueprint for the examination. This document, which defines the competencies that describe the minimum practice standards for a certified critical care nurse, provides the framework for the exam development. 

Next year will also be the first year that nurses will be recertifying their CNCC(C) credentials.

The mission statement of CACCN emphasizes serving the public, members, and the critical care nursing community by meeting the professional and educational needs of critical care nurses. These needs are met by:

• developing and implementing standards of critical care nursing practice
• providing educational opportunities
• supporting and facilitating critical care nursing research
• providing opportunities for networking
• identifying and addressing political and professional issues
• collaborating with other professional organizations.

The objectives for the association, which has over 1,000 members, are:

• To provide informed guidance in shaping the delivery system as it relates to the care of the critically ill.
• To determine and promote standards for critical care nursing.
• To determine certification standards for national testing for the specialty of critical care nursing.
• To promote and provide educational opportunities.
• To improve the quality of patient care through the promotion of nursing research in critical care.
• To promote membership and chapter development.

Under the leadership of CACCN President, Gwynne MacDonald, strategies for the development of a membership recruitment campaign began during the 1998 fiscal year. A plan was developed to establish increased linkages between the national office and critical care nurses across Canada. A letter-writing campaign, the identification of Critical Care Liaisons and permanent CACCN display boards in participating critical care units are some of the activities involved in this initiative.

As CACCN prepares for the future, a new strategic plan entitled, Beyond the Millennium: 1999-2004 establishes priorities for the 1999-2000 fiscal year. The plan also promotes the association’s vision statement. The statement reads: Critical care nursing practice is research-based in an environment committed to quality, holistic care, where optimal client/family outcomes are achieved through partnerships and appropriate use of resources.

Some of the major goals for the association include: redesigning the CACCN home page on its web site; recognizing long-term membership to CACCN; participating in the development of a pediatric critical care exam; exploring alternative strategies for testing psychosocial competencies; initiating a letter-writing campaign to recruit support for certification from institutional leaders; providing three certification awards for successful CNCC(C) candidates; completing/developing position statements on withdrawal of life support, organ donation, advanced practice roles in critical care, and human resource issues facing critical care. The association would also like to further investigate a national initiative to promote bicycle helmet and school bus seat belt legislation.

Also coming in 2000 is a new research grant offered by CACCN. As a result of the financial success of its Dynamics conferences in 1998 and 1999, the association has set up an investment account that will provide a $1,000 research grant. The application deadline for the first award is 1 January 2000.

Anyone wanting more information on CACCN, the office can be reached by phone at (519) 649-5284 or by fax (519) 668-2499 or by e-mail at caccn@caccn.ca or via its web site at www.caccn.ca 

For the first time, nurses wishing to write the certification exam in nephrology nursing will have a prep guide to help them study. The Nephrology Nursing Certification Exam Prep Guide, published by the Canadian Nurses Association in partnership with the Canadian Association of Nephrology Nurses and Technologists (CANNT) and Janssen-Ortho Inc., is a superb resource for preparing for the CNA nephrology certification exam.

The prep guide is divided into seven chapters, all of which are designed to help with preparation for the exam. Chapter 1 provides background on the CNA certification exam, the eligibility requirements, and the application process. Chapter 2 explains how and by whom the exam is developed. Chapter 3 contains information on the exam content and the multiple-choice format. Chapter 4 provides advice on effective exam taking, and Chapter 5 offers useful study tips. A practice exam with 167 questions is presented in Chapter 6. Chapter 7 contains the answer key and rationales for marking the practice exam.

The prep guide will be available, in English and French, by December.

An order form will be sent to all eligible nephrology candidates, along with their eligibility letter. The cost of the prep guide is $34.95 (CNA/CANNT members) and $43.75 (non-members) plus shipping/handling and taxes.

Contact CNA certification staff to receive an order form.

The year 2000 will be the 20th anniversary for the Certification Program – 20 years since a resolution was brought forward by nurses at the CNA Biennium in Vancouver asking CNA to consider creating a certification program for nursing specialties.

With the 2000 CNA Biennium being held in Vancouver from 18 to 21 June, the opportunity for the Certification Program to do something special to mark the occasion was appropriate and timely. As a result, Certification is presenting a preconference workshop on 18 June on the topic of antibiotic resistance.

The workshop, which will fill the majority of the day, will include a panel presentation of experts providing information on the various perspectives (for example, global, acute care, long-term care, community) of antibiotic resistance.

Participants will also be brought up-to-date on a national strategy being developed by Health Canada in conjunction with the Canadian Coordinating Committee on Antibiotic Resistance. The national strategy will contain three components: antibiotic use; surveillance; and, infection control/containment.

The workshop will be accepted by the CNA Certification Program as continued education (C.E.) hours. Please retain proof of your attendance.