CCI Certifications: Early Career Nursing

By Kellie Anderson

A re you a new perioperative nurse looking for a way to set yourself apart from your colleagues? Diving into certifications is not just for those that have been in their respective fields for years. Professional development is vital to one’s career path and, through certifications, an individual can demonstrate their extensive knowledge, skills and abilities in a defined role.

Competency and Credentialing Institute (CCI) now offers an earlycareer perioperative nursing credential known as the Certified Foundational Perioperative Nurse (CFPN). The CFPN credential puts you on the fast-track to earning either the Certified Operating Room Nurse (CNOR) or the Certified Ambulatory Surgery Nurse (CNAMB) credentials (depending on your specific expertise in field of practice) once you have reached 18 months of experience as a perioperative nurse. These accelerated options allow for testing six months earlier than the traditional two-year eligibility requirement. In addition to being eligible to test for CNOR or CNAMB earlier, CFPN credential holders also receive a discount on testing for either credential.

Now, I will provide an in-depth look at the CFPN credential. CFPN is a bit different from CCI’s other credentials, as there are more steps than just a knowledge-based test (KBT). Upon successfully passing the exam, there are three more components that must be completed to officially earn the CFPN credential.

The second component is the selfassessment of competency. This activity is completed directly within the candidate’s account through the CCI’s learning management system: the CCI Classroom. The candidate answers questions from the Perceived Perioperative Competence Scale (PPCS-R) to measure their overall perioperative knowledge.

The third component of the CFPN credential is the 16pf Competency Report. This report assesses 16 primary personality factors to measure skills and traits nurses will need to be successful in their careers. Once completed, candidates receive a report from CCI’s testing vendor, PSI, with interpretive information and professional development tips.

The fourth and final component of the CFPN credential is the reflective learning exercise. Candidates utilize feedback from the PPCS-R to complete an exercise that aids them in developing a personal development plan. This plan spans the next two years of their careers, which is also the duration of the CFPN credential.

The second, third and fourth components are not pass or fail exercises like the first component is. These three components are designed to provide new nurses with a firm foundation for career-long professional development success. It is important to note that all four of these components must be completed before the candidate reaches two years of perioperative nursing experience to become eligible for the CFPN credential. The rationale behind this is that the candidate is now eligible for CNOR or CNAMB, depending on their field of practice.

As candidates proceed through the CFPN credential process, they are awarded digital badges upon completion of each of the four components. Digital badges are a virtual image/logo that is embedded with a link to a webpage that describes, in detail, what the nurse accomplished to earn the badge. These four digital badges are awarded at no additional cost to the certificant. Upon completion of all four components of the CFPN credential, a final CFPN digital badge will be issued to celebrate the nurse’s achievement. These badges can be displayed on email signatures, LinkedIn and various other places of the recipient’s choice.

To learn more about the CFPN credential, visit www.cc-institute.org/ cfpn/learn/ or contact CCI directly via email at Info@cc-institute.org or by phone at 888.257.2667 for assistance.

– Kellie Anderson is a credentialing & volunteer specialist at Competency and Credentialing Institute (CCI). She has roughly four years of experience in the credentialing field, and holds a Bachelor of Science in sociology, and a credentialing specialist certificate.