The Benefits of Certification

For Nursing Professionals

Certification is an objective, measurable way of determining a nurse's competency that attests to the achievement of specialty knowledge beyond basic nursing preparation. Here are just a few ways this important credential benefits you:

• Increased compensation
• Enhanced career mobility
• The right to use the trademark credential CPNP® (Certified Pediatric Nurse Practitioner) or CPN® (Certified Pediatric Nurse)
• Elevation of the professional practice standards for pediatric nurse practitioner practice and pediatric nursing
• Recognition of your special knowledge to employers, consumers, and colleagues
• Provision of national certification credentials to state licensing bodies and employers
• A 10% discount and free shipping on all Elsevier books.

CPNs® get free subscriptions to ADVANCE for Nurses and Needle Tips, plus your certification is worth college credit at Excelsior College. To receive Excelsior degree credit, please save and complete our CPN Verification Form.

CPNPs® get free subscriptions to Pediatric Annals, Infectious Diseases in Children, Contemporary Pediatrics, Needle Tips, and ADVANCE for Nurse Practitioners.

Once you're certified, marketing your credentials is easy! Visit our Tool Kit page to learn more. And to read why one nurse decided to become certified in her own words, click here.

For Employers

Your support of certification is an investment that helps you:

• Retain the best. Research shows that certification increases staff's perception of empowerment, which is linked to lower levels of burn-out.
• Recruit the brightest. Institutions that encourage certification are very attractive to potential hires.
• Assure the public. A high percentage of certified nurses at your facility tells consumers you?re dedicated to superlative patient care.
• Achieve recognition. The presence of certified nurses on staff is an important quality indicator for hospitals seeking Magnet status and is also recognized by accrediting agencies.
• Support continued learning. The PNCB Recertification Program assures growth in the knowledge and skills of every CPN® and CPNP®.

From offering our CPN® On-site Exam to adding credentials to name badges, there are many ways to show you encourage staff to seek certification. Please see our Employer's Guide to Supporting Certification brochure to find out more.

For the Public

More and more consumers are becoming aware of the importance of certification. When patients or their families ask about the letters on your name badge, you have the opportunity to educate the public on the value of certification. Visit our Tool Kit page to see how to answer questions the public may have.

For more about certification, please see the following:

• Pediatric Nurses Value Certification. Pediatric Nursing Certification Board, January 2007.
• American Board of Nursing Specialties (ABNS) Value of Certification Survey Executive Summary. American Board of Nursing Specialties, May 2006.
• Certified Registered Nurses: Results of the Study of the Certified Workforce. Cary, A.H. American Journal of Nursing. 101(1):44-52, January 2001.
• Differences in Perceptions of Empowerment Among Nationally Certified and Noncertified Nurses. Piazza, Irene M., et al. Journal of Nursing Administration. 36(5):277-283, May 2006.
• NAPNAP Position Paper on Certification. National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners, June 2006.
• Specialty Certification: More Than A Title. Stromborg, M.F., Niebuhr, B.N., et al. Nursing Management. 36(5):36?46, May 2005.
• The Value of Specialty Nursing Certification. Biel, M., and Niebuhr, B.N. Nursing Outlook. 55 (4):176-181, July-August 2007.
• Why Certification? Society of Pediatric Nurses Certification webpage accessed June 7, 2007.