What is the quickest specialty certification out there?

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Hey everyone,

I see that a lot of the specialty certifications out there require 2 years+ experience or so many hours or whatever. I'm wondering what certification out there is the quickest to get? Anyone know? The quickest I've seen is wound care I think...

Any insight would be great! Many thanks!

I know several nurses who passed the CPEN with a year of experience, so I'm not sure it's a fluke if you can study and apply sound test taking techniques and pass. Perhaps the exams should be harder if it's possible to pass them with minimal experience.
Let's face it, even the NCLEX itself is a pretty lame exam.

By their very nature, MC tests are not terribly difficult.

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Specializes in FNP, ONP.
BlueDevil, I could get certified and teach the class but it wouldn't be a great class because I haven't got extensive experience.

My ACLS classes have been taught by either a 25-year paramedic or a 10-year ED doc. What has made the class worthwhile are all the real-life case studies that they introduce, not the algorithms or mock codes which come right out of the (excellent) AHA book.

I don't think anybody's got any business 'teaching' ACLS unless they've got 50-100 codes or near-codes under their belt.

Well I understand and respect that you do not think it is ideal, but AHA doesn't agree. We are desperate for instructors and we take anyone who can fog a mirror. So as far as her original query goes, if it satisfies her Visa requirement it could be a good option for her, though I do understand why some may think it inappropriate. My answer is aimed at helping the OP solve her problem and was not really intended to address how to maximize the best ACLS experience. ;)

Personally in the last 15 years that I have been teaching ACLS and PALS, the curriculum has been dumbed down so much my 3rd grader could pass it and my middle schooler could teach it, no problem. Did you know that unless they are really just totally incapable of demonstrating basic understanding of core concepts, we are no longer allowed to fail a student? Remediate to success is the official motto.

Both courses use a very straight forward algorithm and AHA won't let us deviate from the script at all. We have to use the video, we have to teach by the script. Technically we are not even allowed to tell anecdotal stories based on our experience, it is against AHA guidelines for instructors. If monkeys could talk, they could teach ACLS.

Bottom line, if the OP can work a DVD player, she is in like Flynn, lol.

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Specializes in Oncology; medical specialty website.
I know several nurses who passed the CPEN with a year of experience, so I'm not sure it's a fluke if you can study and apply sound test taking techniques and pass. Perhaps the exams should be harder if it's possible to pass them with minimal experience.

At least they had some experience prior to taking the test. Recently, there has been a spate of threads asking what certifications require no clinical time. Also, your co-workers were working in a specialty and had the motivation to continue to improve themselves; that's a lot different from the individuals who seems to want a certification...any certification, just to buff their résumés.

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Specializes in Oncology; medical specialty website.
Let's face it, even the NCLEX itself is a pretty lame exam.

By their very nature, MC tests are not terribly difficult.

I don't know...I took the hospice cert and the OCN. I wouldn't classify either of them as "not terribly difficult. Perhaps we're not talking about the same thing; at the moment, I'm drawing a blank on what an "MC test" is.

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Specializes in Oncology; medical specialty website.
Well I understand and respect that you do not think it is ideal, but AHA doesn't agree. We are desperate for instructors and we take anyone who can fog a mirror. So as far as her original query goes, if it satisfies her Visa requirement it could be a good option for her, though I do understand why some may think it inappropriate. My answer is aimed at helping the OP solve her problem and was not really intended to address how to maximize the best ACLS experience. ;)

Personally in the last 15 years that I have been teaching ACLS and PALS, the curriculum has been dumbed down so much my 3rd grader could pass it and my middle schooler could teach it, no problem. Did you know that unless they are really just totally incapable of demonstrating basic understanding of core concepts, we are no longer allowed to fail a student? Remediate to success is the official motto.

Both courses use a very straight forward algorithm and AHA won't let us deviate from the script at all. We have to use the video, we have to teach by the script. Technically we are not even allowed to tell anecdotal stories based on our experience, it is against AHA guidelines for instructors. If monkeys could talk, they could teach ACLS.

Bottom line, if the OP can work a DVD player, she is in like Flynn, lol.

It's a shame about the anecdotal stories. That's where you can really learn some interesting stuff.

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I don't know...I took the hospice cert and the OCN. I wouldn't classify either of them as "not terribly difficult. Perhaps we're not talking about the same thing; at the moment, I'm drawing a blank on what an "MC test" is.

Multiple choice, I assume.

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Which means it won't likely satisfy any requirements for having specialized experience for immigration purposes. The U.S. is full of people that can work a DVD player.

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Specializes in Oncology; medical specialty website.
Which means it won't likely satisfy any requirements for having specialized experience for immigration purposes. The U.S. is full of people that can work a DVD player.

Don't be too sure about that. I get confuzzled with all the remotes it takes just to play a darned movie.

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Specializes in Peds/outpatient FP,derm,allergy/private duty.
It's a shame about the anecdotal stories. That's where you can really learn some interesting stuff.

I agree 100% with this, and feel the same about nursing instructors. Their stories fascinated me and enriched the content. There's a culture about nursing as anything else. If the AHA discourages such anecdotes, I can't help but feel it's part of an overall process of trying to turn nurses into cookie-cutter personalities only capable of delivering pre-fabbed, dry and focus-grouped comments. Makes me sad, honestly.

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Specializes in Critical Care, ED, Cath lab, CTPAC,Trauma.

The CEN and CCRN are NOT easy exams by any means. I will say I think the CCRN was by far the more difficult exam....the CCRN requires active care of critical patients, the critical patients must be cared for in the US or Canada...CCRN Frequently Asked Questions CEN does not.....Eligibility – BCEN

But I am not sure this qualifies them for the VISA requirements.

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...and we may never know, as the OP has apparently left the building without clarifying.

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Specializes in Psychiatry.
I don't know...I took the hospice cert and the OCN. I wouldn't classify either of them as "not terribly difficult.

THIS!! The hospice cert exam was difficult, but well worth it, I learned A LOT about my specialty.

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