Obtaining certification

I just sat for my AACN Med-Surg cert last week and it was pretty straight forward. I didn't study at all and did just fine. Of course, i'm teaching pharm to ADN students and do a lot of disease/patho review before starting certain classes of meds so that was review in itself. A lot of what was in the AACN certification text was not really on the test, but it's a good reference to have if you don't mind spending the money. Don't go crazy buying other review materials...it will be a waste of your money.

I did it because I've begun to teach and I think that the letters look good on the syllabus - adds to credibility. It didn't get me anything in the way of a wage increase at work (I'm a floor nurse too), just a pat on the back from my boss and a little blurb published in the quarterly nursing mag. It may help to distinguish me from other candidates should I choose to pursue another position, but that's not in my near future.

If you're feeling ambitious and think the review will help you brush up your knowledge, go for it. Check with your facility because they may pay for it!

Good luck!!

Thanks for responding. What book do you recommend? Congratulations to you!

i took the med-surg cert about 2 yrs ago ( which was also 2 yrs after being a new grad). I might sound like a dork, but i actually studied for it by using the springhouse med-sur cert book. Just read through it and reviewed the parts I wasn't familiar with more. I know some nurses are proud to have passed the test without even studing for it, just woke up and walked into the test center and passed. Great! For me, I wanted to pass first try and did.

http://www.nursesbooks.org/Main-Menu/Certification/ANCC-Resources/Medical-Surgical-Nurse-Review.aspx

It's a comprehensive overview of Medical-Surgical nursing. I will keep it for reference for sure because it really is a great text.

No offense meant to anyone regarding not having reviewed for the test. I didn't physically have the time to review given the fact that I work two jobs, have two small kids, along with about a million other things. I wasn't patting myself on the back, just trying to reassure anyone who takes it that it's pretty straight forward (unlike other certification exams I've taken).

Thanks for the link.