SAMPLE NEWSLETTER ARTICLE FOR
RN SPECIALTY GROUPS
ACHIEVING CONTINUED COMPETENCE: RN SPECIALTY CERTIFICATION MEETS NURSE LICENSURE
RENEWAL CRITERIA IN (STATE)
Byline: XXXX XXXXXX, XX, XX, XX
Whether you are an emergency nurse, orthopaedic, hospice, operating room nurse or one of the scores
of other RN specialties, you understand that achieving certification in a specialty area of nursing practice
provides personal satisfaction and professional accomplishment. As an added bonus, attaining certification in your specialty area of RN practice also is a way of demonstrating continuing competence for
renewing your license in (State).
The (State) Board of Nursing has joined many other states in allowing an RN to demonstrate continued
competency through achieving certification from a nationally recognized certification board’s examination, such as the ones obtained by (specialty) nurses from the Board of Certification for
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX. This licensure option is offered in lieu of demonstrating competency through ##
contact hours to renew your state nursing license. {Note particulars of how your state allows an RN to
renew her/his license and demonstrate competence.}
Why allow nurses to demonstrate ongoing competence through recognizing RN specialty certification?
Nursing certification promotes professionalism, enhancing safe, quality nursing care for our patients.
Nursing practice is not static. As nurses deal with accelerated patient needs, rapid technology growth,
regulatory changes redefining the scope of practice for RNs, and the numerous other modern day challenges, all nurses must have a mechanism that aids them in keeping up with their evolving specialty
nursing practice. Certification is the validating mechanism that helps professionals maintain front-edge
knowledge and practice. Certification also encourages transparency and accountability by letting our
patients know that the certified nurse has achieved the specific practice knowledge necessary to provide
ongoing, competent nursing care.
Using nursing certification as a way to renew your nursing license requires that a certifying body accredited by a national certification accreditation agency, which in turn is recognized by the (State) Board of
Nursing, must issue the certification. Authorized certification accreditation agencies include the American Board for Nursing Specialties (ABNS). {Check each states rules regarding the acceptance of specialty nursing certifications for RNs.}
According to the ABNS, “Certification is the formal recognition of the specialized knowledge, skills, and
experience demonstrated by the achievement of standards identified by a nursing specialty to promote
optimal health outcomes.” For a complete list of ABNS-approved nursing certifications, see their
Approved Certifications Programs at www.nursingcertification.org/accreditation-exams.
The next time you renew your nursing license, consider choosing to demonstrate the achievement,
maintenance, or renewal of an approved national nursing certification in your nursing area of specialty
practice as a means of licensure renewal. In the unlikely event you are “audited” by the (State) Board
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of Nursing, for maintaining your licensure renewal criteria, with a certification, all you need to do is produce a copy of your current RN-specialty certification card. It is that simple! {Check specific audit practices of your state.}
For further information, please refer to the Board of Certification for Emergency Nurses (BCEN®) Web
site at www.BCENcertifications.org. BCEN is leading the effort to encourage states and employers to
recognize specialty nursing certification as a way to satisfy ongoing continued competence requirements, including using certification to substitute for continuing education credits.
Also, check with your (State) Board of Nursing, for its latest continuing competency requirements,
including continuing education.
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