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Eligibility for CRNFA® Certification |
You must be CNOR certified or certified as an advanced registered nurse practitioner with a Bachelor's degree by the application deadline for the testing window selected.
Track your practice hours online, or download the CRNFA documentation form.
Without exception, you must meet ALL the following requirements by the application deadline:
- You must be currently licensed, without provision or condition, as a registered nurse in the country where you're currently practicing surgical nursing.
- You must be a CNOR or an advanced registered nurse practitioner certified in your specialty at the time of application.
- You must have a bachelor’s degree in any field, and a copy of your diploma must accompany your application.
- You must have completed at least 2000 documented hours of practice as an RNFA, including pre-, intra-, and postoperative patient care. Pre- and postoperative patient care does not necessarily have to be connected to cases on which you've assisted.
- The 2000 hours may include practice in an RNFA internship or practicum but may not include attendance of classes, programs or seminars.
- 500 of these hours must have been within the two years immediately preceding application.
- The exam contains 70 percent intraoperative patient care and 30 percent pre- and postoperative patient care. Therefore, 600 of the 2000 hours required for eligibility may be pre- and postoperative patient care, and at least 1400 hours must be intraoperative practice.
- Written documentation of the 2000 hours of practice must accompany your application.
- You must have completed an acceptable formal RNFA program.
CRNFA Eligibility Statement
The CCI Board of Directors has approved a change in eligibility requirements for the CRNFA certification program. Effective August 1, 2008, a bachelor’s degree in any field, along with the completion of the existing CRNFA eligibility requirements, will be accepted in order to sit for the CRNFA exam. Prior to this date, a bachelor’s degree in nursing (BSN), or in its absence a master’s degree in nursing (MSN), was required. All other CRNFA exam requirements, including the requirement of a CNOR or APRN credential, 2,000 RNFA practice hours and completion of an accepted RNFA program, remain unchanged.
Expanding the bachelor’s degree requirement to include non-nursing bachelor’s degrees reflects the characteristics of a changing nursing workforce. Many nursing students are entering a second-career and have bachelor’s degrees in other fields such as business, the sciences or education. This change will maintain the existing standards and value of the credential, while allowing other baccalaureate prepared nurses to pursue a career as a CRNFA.
This change is in response to input received from CRNFA experts who recently convened to review the CRNFA job analysis and exam blueprint. During their meeting, they unanimously agreed to recommend this change to the CCI Board of Directors. The Board met earlier this month to review and discuss this recommendation, and acted to approve the change immediately thereafter.
If you have any questions about this change, or wish to apply for the CRNFA exam, please call 888-257-2667. The next exam application deadline is August 31, 2008, which would enable a qualified applicant, to test at any available time in October, November or December.
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