Nurse Certification

I have been nationally certified in IV Therapy by the INS (Intravenous Nurses Society) and as a Medical Surgical Nurse by the American Nurses Association. In both cases, I had to have been a practicing RN for several years in that specialty and verify that. I had to take a 4 hour test which had a hefty application fee. When I passed the test the certification was good for 2 or 3 years (each had different rules). I was also entitled to add certain initials after my name. By far the hardest to obtain for me was the IV certification. I had a lot of difficulty with the electrolyte part of that test. To maintain these certifications you generally have the choice of re-taking the tests (no one wants to do that) or submitting a certain number of CEU in that specialty which the agency who grants the certification offers throughout the year and this is the option most people choose. Those CEUs can also apply toward thw CEUs needed for state RN license renewals as well.