Executive Summary of CCRN Exam Development
AACN Certification Corporation conducts regular national studies of practice, also known as practice analyses, as the basis for the development of certification test plans, which are based on current clinical practice. The purpose of the CCRN study of practice is to describe the job activities of critical care nurses in sufficient detail to provide a basis for the development of professional, job-related specialty certification exams.
A Practice Analysis Task Force (PATF) was appointed by AACN Certification Corporation to conduct the activities necessary to identify the responsibilities of an acute/critical care nurse and to develop the test specifications. The diversity of this group reflects the acute/critical care nurse’s job. All PATF members demonstrate expertise in the duties and activities associated with the profession.
A Practice Analysis Task Force (PATF) was appointed by AACN Certification Corporation. The selected subject matter experts represented a wide variety of work-related characteristics, such as years of experience, work setting, geographic location and area of specialty. This diversity reduces the risk of bias as the PATF develops a scope of practice reflecting the roles and responsibilities of critical care nurses.
The PATF met in September 2023 to identify the responsibilities of adult, pediatric and neonatal acute/critical care nurses and develop a web-based survey tool. The PATF developed and piloted a survey that included nursing action statements and patient care problem statements, as follows:
| Nursing Action Statements | Patient Care Problem Statements | |
|---|---|---|
| Adult | 78 | 142 |
| Pediatric | 61 | 118 |
| Neonatal | 77 | 96 |
The final web survey was sent to individuals identified by AACN Certification Corporation as nurses practicing in acute/critical care. The survey yielded 2,337 usable responses (1,383 adult, 709 pediatric, 247 neonatal), with respondents' ratings displaying an acceptable level of interrater reliability for the patient care problems and nursing actions.
Reviewing the survey results, the PATF identified the task and knowledge areas that would comprise the new CCRN Test Plans and developed the weighting for each major patient care problem domain.
The CCRN Exam Pool Review Committee (EPRC) then reviewed the complete pool of exam items for relevance, accuracy and fairness, validating each item with at least one evidence-based reference listed on the exam bibliography.
Last, the CCRN Score Evaluation Committee (SEC) analyzed the difficulty of the items in the final item pool to determine the passing standard, also known as the cut score. The multiple-choice specialty credential exams will each be composed of 125 scored items plus 25 unscored pretest items.
The CCRN Test Plans are available for exam candidates, review course instructors, and other interested individuals and organizations.
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