Specialty Certification: A Magnet Challenge
from Caring For Our Future, Spring 2006
By Lynne Hedrick, MS, RN, CNAA, BC, VP Patient Care Services
On Oct. 16, The Children’s Hospital received the highly anticipated telephone call from the American Nurses Credentialing Center informing us that the organization had been awarded the prestigious designation of “magnet” status. Less than two months prior to this call, the Division of Nursing endured the rigorous review required for magnet designation, resulting in the achievement of nursing’s highest honor in recognition of excellence.
As has been reported, our review was stellar in terms of feedback during the site visit itself as well as in the validation we received in the formal written report that was sent following the official notification. The 14 Forces of Magnetism were clearly evident to the surveyors in the documentation we submitted and even more importantly in the practice environment they assessed. In their final summation, they made only one recommendation having to do with the number of staff nurses holding national specialty certifications.
At the time of our site visit in August 2005, about 13 percent (approximately 150) of nurses at Children’s held national certification. However, as noted by our surveyors, 67 percent of those nurses certified are Nurse Practitioners who are required to be certified to practice under protocols. Although the surveyors commented on the “great strides” being made by Children’s in this regard, they noted that more effort is needed to promote the professional certification of nursing staff.
Many within the nursing profession at large consider certification a significant indicator of the knowledge and experience of a nurse. There is no doubt that Children’s values nursing knowledge and expertise and that education is a longstanding value that is promoted and supported by the organization. The fact that more than 82 percent of Children’s nurses are BSN-prepared, with 17 percent prepared at the master’s level, is testament to that value.
So why are our numbers of professional certifications lower than those of other magnet facilities? One answer lies in the paucity of pediatric-specialty certifications available. The majority of magnet hospitals and certification examinations are adult-focused. The magnet surveyors recognized this disadvantage for children’s hospitals and challenged Children’s to work with other organizations to create more pediatric sub-specialty opportunities for certification.
Another answer as to why our numbers may be lower is that other than for nurse practitioners, Children’s does not require certification of nurses. However, since our magnet survey, our numbers have steadily risen, regardless of not having a requirement. The reason for this is multifaceted and may include an obvious increased awareness of the importance as it relates to magnet recognition, an available funding source that assists with the financial burden and peer support in terms of unit-based study groups. Additionally, the ability to offer at least one of the exams (Certified Pediatric Nurse) on-site has proven to be a draw for many.
A key question that emerged from the internal debate about staff nurse certification was how meaningful it was for individuals and his or her nursing practice. In discussions with the Clinical Nurse Council, staff nurses felt strongly that certification should be an individual responsibility that a nurse values for his or her own professional development. They suggested that rather than requiring certification, Children’s continue to enhance supportive mechanisms (e.g. funding, study groups, on-site testing) and develop means by which certification is recognized as an achievement.
As discussions about how best to recognize certifications throughout the Division of Nursing continued, it became apparent that one size does not fit all and that recognition one nurse finds meaningful may not be so to another. Different ideas will be explored, including name-badge recognition and small celebrations. Beginning with this issue of Caring for our Future, a new section titled “TCH Allstars” has been added to recognize certifications in addition to other honors nurses have attained.
Nurses at Children’s are committed to expert pediatric care. Specialty certification is one way to formally recognize that expertise and acknowledge individual professional development. Nurses at Children’s are up for the magnet challenge!
