Child & Adolescent Behavioral & Mental Health Exam FAQs

About This Certification
1. What are the benefits of earning this certification?

2. Is this exam linked to licensure?

3. Will this certification impact reimbursement in a positive way?

4. How much will the exam cost?

Recertification
5. What recertification requirements will this credential entail?

Eligibility
6. I am a Developmental Behavioral NP. Is this exam right for me?

7. What are the eligibility requirements for this exam? Will I have to complete additional coursework?

8. Do I have to be certified by the PNCB as a CPNP to be eligible?

9. I'm an Adult Mental Health APRN who provides care to adolescents and young adults. Is this exam right for me?

10. I am a Child Psych/Mental Health APRN but do not practice in a primary care setting. Is this exam right for me?

About This Certification

1. What are the benefits of earning this certification?
Benefits include:

• Formal recognition of your expertise. This exam will validate pediatric providers and clinicians who have added knowledge, skills and expertise in the early identification, intervention and collaboration of care of children and adolescents with mental and behavioral health concerns in primary care.

• Increased marketability. Earning this certification can positively influence employers.

• Reassurance for consumers. Those certified can share their achievement with patients and/or their families to let them know your expertise is nationally recognized and validated, thus increasing patient confidence.

2. Is this exam linked to licensure? No. PNCB certification in pediatric behavioral/mental health will not impact an APRN's (NP or CNS) current licensure status.

3. Will this certification impact reimbursement in a positive way?
Third party payers do often look at the credentials of those providing the intended service, but at this point, we cannot say that reimbursement of child and adolescent behavioral and mental health services will improve as a result of this specialty certification.

4. How much will the exam cost?
The cost has yet to be determined but will take into account the responses of APRNs who have expressed interested in this credential and provided feedback to an initial query.

Recertification

5. What recertification requirements will this credential entail?
There will be a recertification process to maintain this credential that will be determined as data is analyzed from responses provided to our national role delineation research. It is expected that recertification requirements will include components of continuing education, clinical practice and standards assessment. The PNCB Board of Directors will publish recertification policies for this new specialty certification within one year following the initial launch of the exam. Please check the PNCB website for up-to-date information.

Eligibility

6. I am a Developmental Behavioral NP. Is this exam right for me?
The role delineation research survey that was developed to identify critical content areas for the exam incorporated essential pediatric developmental and behavioral concepts. We encourage you to participate in our role delineation research survey. Following analysis of the responses to this national survey, a detailed exam content outline will be developed that should include both developmental and behavioral health concepts. As our exam content outline is developed and published, we encourage you to review this information to determine if this specialty exam would be appropriate for you.

7. What are the eligibility requirements for this exam? Will I have to complete additional coursework?
Review the eligibility requirements developed by our expert panel of pediatric mental health APRNs and the PNCB Board of Directors. As this exam will focus on validating knowledge and skills related to the care of children and adolescents, clinical experience in the area of child and adolescent behavioral and mental health will be expected. All candidates will need to document current active certification and licensure as APRNs; NPs and CNS candidates for this exam should be credentialed to provide clinical care to children and adolescents (i.e., Pediatric Nurse Practitioner, Family Nurse Practitioner, Family Psych/Mental Health Nurse Practitioner, Child and Adolescent Psych/Mental Health CNS or Pediatric CNS). Candidates must have completed an accredited graduate Master's, Post-Master's, or Doctoral advanced practice nursing program

8. Do I have to be certified by the PNCB as a CPNP to be eligible?
No. Any APRN meeting the exam's eligibility requirements may apply for this APRN specialty exam.

9. I'm an Adult Mental Health APRN who provides care to adolescents and young adults. Is this exam right for me?
Advanced practice certified adult psych/mental health APRNs provide expert care within a defined scope of practice that includes care to adults with serious and persistent mental health illness. Within a regulatory scope of practice recognized by individual state boards of nursing, adult psych/mental health APRNs may provide care to adolescents and young adults. It is important to note that the PNCB's specialty exam in Child and Adolescent Mental Health will focus on mental and behavioral health issues of children and adolescents as they are likely to present in primary care. Some of the exam content is likely to be relevant to an adult nurse practitioner whose practice includes adolescents. However, much of the content will focus on younger children whose care would be outside the scope of APRNs providing mental health care to an adult population.

10. I am a Child Psych/Mental Health APRN but do not practice in a primary care setting. Is this exam right for me?
Child psych/mental health APRNs have been certified to provide expert care to children and adolescents with mental health diagnoses, including serious and persistent mental illness. The PNCB's new specialty exam will focus on the wider range of concerns commonly seen in the primary care setting, including prevention, early screening of developmental and behavioral patterns of concern, the use of brief solution-focused interventions suitable for primary care settings, collaborative management of children with mental health diagnoses, and the integration of mental health care within the primary care health care home. Child psych APRNs may choose to take this exam to demonstrate a wider focus that includes primary mental health care of children and adolescents.