Emergency Department Receives National Certification Champion Award

The University of Vermont Health Network-Champlain Valley Physicians Hospital (CVPH) was named a 2020 National Certification Champion Award winner by the Board of Certification for Emergency Nursing (BCEN). The honor was announced during a virtual ceremony streamed across the country last month.

The BCEN is considered the benchmark for board certification across the emergency nursing spectrum. CVPH competed against large healthcare organizations nationwide. The hospital was recognized for having half of its Emergency Department nurses board certified, well on the way to the department’s 5-year goal of every nurse achieving at least one board certification.

“We are very proud of this award, because CVPH has a long history of supporting nursing staff in pursuit of professional specialty certification,” CVPH Chief Nursing Officer Carrie Howard-Canning, MBA, MSN, RN, CNEP said. “Our nurses are committed to learning throughout their careers, and that is a tremendous benefit to our patients.”

Howard-Canning also pointed out the effort required by nurses to continue their growth throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The persistence that our nurses in the Emergency Department and across all areas of the hospital have shown in their commitment to certification during these challenging times is remarkable.”

Board certification, which independently validates advanced specialty knowledge and expertise, is nursing’s highest professional credential. BCEN noted CVPH as a standout for the way it encourages, supports, rewards and recognizes certification.

“To the benefit of every patient and community they serve, these organizations are all in when it comes to ensuring their emergency, trauma and transport nurses practice at the top of their specialty,” BCEN Executive Director Janie Schumaker, MBA, BSN, RN, CEN, CENP, CPHQ, FABC offered.

CVPH Clinical Education Manager Gina Carbino, BSN, RN, CEN, CPEN, TCRN, CFRN, CTRN, CCRN, PCCN, SANE-A said she sees a renewed commitment to teamwork and collaboration as more Emergency Department nurses earn their board certifications.

“When our nurses become certified, I see a change in them,” Carbino added. “There is definitely a sense of pride they maybe did not show as much before. They are more confident in their actions. And, they’re willing to share what they’ve learned during the process, benefiting their colleagues and patients.”

Childress Regional Medical Center in Childress, Texas and Life Link III in Minneapolis, Minnesota joined CVPH as this year’s National Certification Champion Award winners.

Read more here.