Nursing, Nursing RN, Exam Prep
The Ins and Outs of Being a Certified Emergency Nurse (CEN®)
Thinking about the next step in your career? The nursing profession is a robust field, with certifications running the gamut of clinical, managerial, and educational specialties. But which is the best choice for you? Here, we’ll take a closer look at what it means to be a Certified Emergency Nurse (CEN).
Certified Emergency Nurse: What Does It Mean, and Why is Certification Valuable?
A CEN is an RN who is officially recognized as having the knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform competent emergency nursing care. Attaining the CEN means you now join an elite group of nearly 40,000 nurses who hold the CEN credential. You will have met a national standard of excellence in the care of patients who need urgent care.
How valuable is the CEN credential? One study, based on responses from over 1,000 emergency nurse supervisors, found positive relationships between holding the CEN and multiple aspects of technical performance, accuracy, and ethical behavior. And 80% of nurses with a current CEN certification said certification means being more likely to have the knowledge needed on the job.
What Does a CEN Do?
Emergency nurses work in emergency departments, caring for patients who may need urgent, life-saving care. You may work in a subcategory of emergency care: stroke, cardiac, or burn units, or you may work in a general emergency department. Settings range from critical access hospitals to rural and community institutions.
What conditions will you most often see? Topping the list of reasons for an ED visit is stomach and abdominal pain, cramps, and spasms; followed by chest pain, according to a 2017 survey on ED visits from the CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics. Fever, cough, and shortness of breath were also among the top 10 reasons for an ED visit.
What Type of Person Is a CEN?
As you might expect, emergency nurses thrive in a fast-paced, changing environment. They must be technically proficient while able to work with patients and families during high-stress, sometimes life-threatening situations.
Persistence, determination, and decisiveness, along with anticipating and knowing how to handle the worst-case scenario are also essential characteristics. You’ll care for multiple patients and will need to be able to prioritize care according to your patients’ conditions. The emergency department never closes, so you’ll need to get used to working nights, weekends, and holidays.
How Do I Become a CEN?
You’ll need to complete a 175-question computer-based exam given at a testing center. To qualify for the exam, you must hold a current, unrestricted RN license. Although not required, BCEN recommends you have 2 years’ experience in the emergency department.
Are You Preparing for the Exam?
Prepare for the CEN exam with Certified Emergency Nurse Q&A Practice. You’ll get access to 300 questions and answers with detailed rationales. You can review by exam category or test yourself with either a 150-question timed test or five 30-question mini tests. Try it free for seven days.
Rewarding Work
Providing emergency nursing care can be stressful and can involve long hours of work. However, the reward far outweighs the pressure of the job knowing that you are saving lives every day.
Resources
Board of Certification for Emergency Nursing. (2020, January). BCEN at a Glance. Retrieved from https://bcen.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/BCEN-At-A-Glance-v2020.pdf
Board of Certification for Emergency Nursing. (2018). 5 Compelling Reasons to Get (and Keep) Your Emergency Nursing Specialty Certification: A White Paper for Emergency Nurses. Retrieved from https://bcen.org/nurse-white-paper/
Rui, P., & Kang, K. (2017). National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey: 2017 Emergency Department Summary Tables. Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nhamcs/web_tables/2017_ed_web_tables-508.pdf
Wojciechowski, M. (2017, November 10). Careers in Nursing: An Interview with Emergency Nurse Angela Fennington. Retrieved from https://dailynurse.com/careers-in-nursing-interview-with-emergency-nurse-angela-fennington/
The Board of Certification for Emergency Nursing (BCEN) is the sole owner of the Certified Emergency Nurse (CEN®) certification program. BCEN does not endorse any CEN certification exam review resources or have a proprietary relationship with Springer Publishing Company.