About the CVRN Nursing Board Certification Examinations
1) CVRN-BC
Level I - Nurses working in Telemetry, PCU, Pre and Post Procedure, CCU, CVICU,
Interventional Cardiology, Cardiac Rehab, and Private Practice Settings
2) CVRN-BC
Level II - CCU, CVICU, Interventional Cardiology, and Cath Lab Nursing Staff
3) CVRN-BC
Level III - Interventional and Cath Lab Nursing Staff must obtain CVRN-BC Level II
above and hold a valid RCIS in order to be elevated to the CVRN-BC Level III
Pre-Requisite for the CVRN I or II Exams:
The American Board of Cardiovascular medicine suggests 2 years of experience in your specialty area of
cardiology, be it non-acute or acute care practice before sitting for one of these two exams.
If you do not have 2 years of experience, but have applied yourself to the study of Cardiovascular Nursing Science,
or if you can show proof of satisfactory completion of a Cardiovascular Nursing Education program offered by your
Hospital or an outside resource, such as a college or online learning, we will admit you to the Exam. Once you
obtain the certification, you will need to continue your study in Cardiology and obtain 50 CE hours in Cardiology,
Pulmonary, and anything related to Cardiac or Pulmonary Diseases such as Diabetes, Smoking Cessation, Obesity,
etc., Vascular, including SVD and Stroke. All non-related topics will be rejected, so be sure to continue your studies
in cardiology once you pass your exams.
Exam Preparation:
The ABCM will be hosting the CVRN I Course in Billings Montana on June 3 and 4. To prepare for the exam
ABCM recommends that you either use a study list or study online with up to date references, or you purchase a
comprehensive Cardiovascular Nursing textbook, and look up each item in the study list. You may already feel
comfortable with many of the items in the list if you have been studying what you practice. Send your request for the
study list to jragan8@tampabay.rr.com.
Suggested Resources:
Cardiovascular CVN/CVRN Certification Review (Certification in Cardiovascular Nursing Book 1) (Kindle $39.95)
http://www.amazon.com/Cardiovascular-CVN-CVRN-Certification-Review-Nursing-ebook/dp/B00DRPQKXG
Nurse-Cardiovascular CVN/CVRN Specialty Review and Study Guide: A Series ... (e-book $7.99)
https://books.google.com/books?id=0dKbCgAAQBAJ&pg=PT4063&lpg=PT4063&dq=cvrn+certification+study+giude&source=
bl&ots=fu7eIIu8Zj&sig=3YKUPR3gD_3A_Yz2onASMBOHLs&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiUuZi8mLbKAhWqw4MKHSnqDZQQ6AEIOjAE#v=onepage&q=cvrn%20certification%2
0study%20giude&f=false
CVRN-BC Level I Exam Matrix - 200 questions
Cardiovascular Nursing 101 - Heart Failure, Hypertension, Cardiomyopathy, and ACS = 19.9%
Cardiovascular Nursing 102 - Bedside Assessment of the CV System, Heart Sounds, Anatomy of the Heart and
Great Vessels = 18.5%
Cardiovascular Nursing 103 - Basic EKG Rhythms recognition and diagnostic criteria, some basic 12-lead
diagnoses = 25.5%
Cardiovascular Nursing 105 - Cardiovascular Pharmacology = 17.5%
Cardiovascular Nursing 106 - Cardiac Pacemaker device therapy and troubleshooting = 8%
Cardiovascular Nursing 107 - Interventional procedures and care of the patients receiving them = 10.6%
For more information about this, and the level II and III certifications please visit: http://www.abcmcertification.com/