Certification

'costly expense that requires renewal and a retest every 2 years (?) which CMS does not necessarily endorse neither required for state practice or licensure.

Does your facility require you to be certified? How will this certification enhance your career. 3 years of MDS is a feat. I'll hire you in an instant rather a certified newbie who passed the tests in one sitting.

But hey, if you must, come back here with your troubles and we'll see how we can help.

Talino I really appreciate your support to everyone in this forum and sharing your knowledge.

My facility doesn't require to be certified. I just found out that the facility will pay for the courses I take individually, however I need to show them that I passed, and of course they will pay only for one try.

The membership to AANAC is worthwhile for the information, resources and networking opportunities. The certification is 'preferred' to be had by a number of employers. It's kind of like a positive add on to enhance your marketing and credibility.

'costly expense that requires renewal and a retest every 2 years (?) which CMS does not necessarily endorse neither required for state practice or licensure.

Totally agree with you Talino!

Being MDS-certified is not even required by law in order to do MDS. A lot of nurses don't know that MDS training and reading the manual is what is needed to understand how to code it.