The Board of Certification for Emergency Nursing (BCEN), the benchmark for certification across the emergency spectrum, is celebrating the 30th anniversary of its Certified Flight Registered Nurse (CFRN) certification program. Held by over 5,800 RNs worldwide, the CFRN is one of the longest-running, most complex, multifaceted national nursing specialty certifications.
CFRN certification independently validates an RN’s mastery of flight nursing clinical knowledge and professional issues as well as safety, survival, disaster preparedness, scene operations management, communications, and equipment and aircraft knowledge—all of which are essential to safe, evidence-based, advanced nursing practice in the highly complex, dynamic and autonomous flight nursing environment.
“Since 1993, the CFRN has stood as the hallmark of exceptional flight nursing patient care and safety,” says BCEN CEO Janie Schumaker, MBA, BSN, RN, CEN, CENP, CPHQ, FABC.“BCEN salutes the thousands of CFRN-certified RNs, past and present, for their commitment to their patients, flight nursing excellence, and advancing flight care worldwide.”
CFRN 30-Year Pin
Flight nurses and their partners, often paramedics, are the air medical clinical duo who provide clinical care for critically ill and injured patients during scene responses and interfacility transports.
The top perceived benefits of CFRN certification include flight physiology and flight nursing clinical knowledge, confidence and critical thinking in the flight environment, and a sense of pride and accomplishment, according to The 2022 Certified Flight Registered Nurse Pulse Survey. Nearly 1,000 CFRNs participated in this first value of certification research focused on flight nursing.
Throughout July, CFRN’s 30th-anniversary celebrations will include the following:
A CFRN 30th Anniversary special edition of BCEN’s InformED newsletter
#ThrowbackThursday and #CFRNTributeFriday social posts celebrating the #CFRN30th
CFRN Turns 30 commemoration on July 24, the day RNs sat for the first CFRN exam
Read more about the history of flight nursing and the CFRN credential in the 30th-anniversary edition of “Excellence in the Air: The CFRN,” from BCEN’s Commitment to ExcellenceSeries. The series chronicles the origin and impacts of BCEN’s emergency, trauma, and transport specialty certifications.
BCEN announces the 2023 winners of the annual national BCEN Distinguished Awards, recognizing one top board-certified RN in emergency, pediatric emergency, trauma, flight, and critical care ground transport nursing specialties.
“The 2023 BCEN Distinguished Award recipients embody the highest levels of clinical excellence in their specialties, and we applaud how they convey the importance of emergency, trauma, and transport nursing specialty certification as they support members of their teams to be the best they can be,” says BCEN CEO Janie Schumaker, MBA, BSN, RN, CEN, CENP, CPHQ, FABC.
Distinguished CEN Award (adult/mixed emergency): Calee Muldrow, BSN, RN, CEN, Emergency Department RN with Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas.
Muldrow, a Texas ER nurse, was on maternity leave when she got the news that she was named the 2023 Distinguished CEN (Certified Emergency Nurse). There are 40,000+ CENs worldwide, and the CEN is one of the oldest and most widely held national RN specialty certifications.
Distinguished CPEN Award (pediatric emergency): Dawn Tasche, BSN, RN, CPEN, Emergency Department RN with Aurora Health Care in Sheboygan County, Wisconsin.
Tasche, a Wisconsin ED RN specializing in pediatric emergency care whose leadership led her community hospital’s ED to be the first to be recognized as “pediatric emergency care ready” by Wisconsin Emergency Medical Services, in alignment with national pediatric emergency care standards set by the American Academy of Pediatrics.
Distinguished TCRN Award (trauma): Jordan Tyczka, MSN, RN, CEN, TCRN, Trauma Program Director at Inova Loudoun Hospital in Leesburg, Virginia.
Tyczka, a trauma specialty RN/educator who was just promoted to Trauma Program Director at her Virginia hospital and whose innovative continuing education initiatives include an Escape Room for trauma nurses.
Distinguished CFRN Award (flight): Stacey Dock, MSN, RN, CFRN, Flight Nurse/QA Coordinator/ Preceptor at LifeFlight Eagle in Kansas City, Missouri.
Dock, a 29-year flight nurse who earned her CFRN credential in 1995, is one of the most veteran Certified Flight Registered Nurses still flying and a local legend. Her Kansas City-based transport program originated from one of the first civilian air medical transport programs in the U.S.
Distinguished CTRN Award (critical care ground transport): George Olschewski, BSN, RN, CFRN, CTRN, CEN, TCRN, a Critical Care Transport & Mobile Intensive Care Nurse with the Hackensack University Medical Center Specialty Care Transport Unit in Hackensack, New Jersey.
Olschewski is an NJ-based, 20-year critical care transport/mobile intensive care nurse working in one of healthcare’s most high-stakes, autonomous and complex settings where “things can go sideways very quickly” when transporting critically ill and injured patients, sometimes over long distances. Critical care ground transport is so specialized there are only about 500 board-certified ground transport RNs, but the number of CTRNs has grown by ~20% each of the past several years.
Honorees receive a commemorative Distinguished Award pin and one year of free access to the award-winning BCEN Learn professional development platform (valued at $2,500) to support continuing education in their specialty. They will also be honored at a celebration at their workplace this summer.
Over 50,000 RNs and advanced practice registered nurses in 26 countries hold one or more BCEN nursing specialty credentials as follows: over 40,000 hold the Certified Emergency Nurse (CEN), over 5,400 hold the Certified Pediatric Emergency Nurse (CPEN), over 7,300 hold the Trauma Certified Registered Nurse (TCRN), over 5,700 hold the Certified Flight Registered Nurse (CFRN), and nearly 500 hold the Certified Transport Registered Nurse (CTRN).
BCEN Distinguished Award honorees are selected based on their commitment to clinical excellence and professionalism through specialty certification and their leadership and innovation in supporting board certification for other nurses in their specialty.
National specialty certification independently validates a nurse’s advanced knowledge, clinical judgment, and professionalism across a nursing specialty body of knowledge. Specialty certification is associated with optimal patient outcomes and greater nurse career success and satisfaction.
Nominations for the 2023 BCEN National Certification Champion Awards recognizing organizations committed to specialty nursing excellence are open now. Hospital-based and freestanding emergency departments, trauma centers, health systems, and flight and ground transport programs may apply.
The Emergency Nurse Association (ENA) named longtime emergency nurse and educator Cam Brandt, MS, RN, CEN, CPEN, the recipient of the 2023 Judith C. Kelleher Award, the ENA’s most prestigious honor.
Driven by a passion for caring for children, as well as teaching and mentoring ED nurses, Brandt’s impact could be felt in the emergency departments where she worked and across the emergency nursing community through continual contributions as an ENA leader in Texas and key volunteer with many of the association’s committees – most notably as part of the team that develops the cornerstone Emergency Nurse Pediatric Course.
“The ED and education are where it’s at for me,” says Brandt of Keller, Texas. “I’m just a basic nurse who loved sharing my passion for education and whatever my passion in pediatric emergency care was at the time. This award is surreal. I never would have dreamed of where I am today.”
ENA President Terry Foster, MSN, RN, CEN, CPEN, CCRN, TCRN, FAEN, praised Brandt for her contributions to ENA and the entire emergency nursing community.
“Cam is the epitome of an emergency nurse: fierce, loyal, knowledgeable, persistent, driven and yet very caring,” Foster says. “Her dedication and many years of direct emergency nursing experience speak volumes. She is a role model for many of our ENA members.”
The ENA also announced the recipients of 12 other individual awards, including the annual State Council Achievement Awards and the Team Award.
Foster congratulated this year’s recipients for their inspirational work amid the numerous challenges faced by emergency nurses today.
“It never ceases to amaze me how impactful ENA members are in their emergency departments and as volunteers with this wonderful organization,” Foster says. “These awards are a reflection of how emergency nurses live ENA’s mission every day.”
The 2023 ENA award recipients and other honorees will be recognized during Emergency Nursing 2023 in San Diego on Sept. 21-23.
Here is a complete list of this year’s ENA award winners.
Barbara A. Foley Quality, Safety and Injury Prevention Award:Delfa Soto, MSN, RN, CEN, of California
Behind the Scenes Award: Vicki Sweet, MSN, RN, CEN, FAEN, of California
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Initiatives of the Year Award (Individual): Anna Valdez, PhD, RN, CEN, FAEN, of California
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Initiatives of the Year Award (State Council):Texas ENA State Council
Frank L. Cole Nurse Practitioner Award: David T. House, DNP, RN, CEN, of Texas
Lifetime Achievement Award: Mary Ellen Wilson, MS, RN, CEN, FAEN, of Ohio
Media Award: Gary Kleeblatt, The Middletown Press, Connecticut
Nurse Manager Award:Hannah Longoria, BSN, RN, CEN, of Texas
Nursing Competency in Aging Award: Jennifer A. Noble, MSN, RN, CEN, of Texas
Nursing Education Award: Teri Diloy, MSN, RN, CEN, CPEN, of Virginia
Nursing Practice and Professionalism Award: Leslie Hinson, MSN, RN, CEN, of Texas
Pediatric Readiness Improvement Award: Nancy McGrath, MN, MSN, RN, CPNP, of California
Rising Star Award:Stephanie Jensen, MSN-L, RN, MICN, of California
Team Award: Cook Children’s Trauma Nurse Leaders, Texas
In addition to the individual honors, nine states – Arizona, Illinois, Louisiana, Maryland, Minnesota, North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas and Washington – received 2023 State Council Achievement Awards for their outstanding local efforts last year.
Every day, healthcare workers across the country are violently attacked. The situation is alarming in emergency departments, which are open around the clock and required by federal law to stabilize and treat anyone who walks in. Studies have shown that ED staff experience a violent event about once every two months.
Rep. Joe Courtney, D.-Conn. and Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D.-Wisc. recently introduced the Workplace Violence Prevention for Healthcare and Social Service Workers Act (H.R. 2663 and S. 1176). The Emergency Nurses Association (ENA) has previously supported introducing other workplace violence bills.
“Continued violence against emergency nurses or any healthcare worker is neither normal nor acceptable, under any circumstance, yet the problem has gone unabated to the point of it becoming a crisis,” says 2023 ENA President Terry Foster, MSN, RN, CEN, CPEN, CCRN, TCRN, FAEN. “Meaningful solutions to mitigate and reduce violence in the emergency department are imperative, which is why ENA has long-supported legislation such as the Workplace Violence Prevention for Healthcare and Social Service Workers Act. The time to act is now.”
This proposed legislation directs the Secretary of Labor to require healthcare and social service employers to develop and implement workplace violence prevention plans that are worker-driven and comprehensive to ensure the safety of patients and workers.
Through a workplace violence prevention plan, an employer would:
Develop processes to identify and respond to risks and hazards that make settings vulnerable to violence.
Implement protocols to document and investigate the violence.
Ensure that employees are appropriately trained in identifying and addressing hazards and their rights regarding workplace violence.
Workplace violence has long been a top priority for ENA, which supported similar bills introduced in the last four congressional cycles. In 2019, ENA and the American College of Emergency Physicians united to launch the No Silence on ED Violence campaign focused on raising awareness about the issue and providing emergency nurses and physicians with relevant resources and a peer support network.
Dana Shomo, RN, BSN, is a Nurse Manager Outpatient Surgery/Post-Anesthesia Care Unit at Augusta Health in Virginia’s beautiful Shenandoah Valley.
As a leader and a mentor, Shomo is valued and is a resource for many at Augusta Health, and in March, Shomo was awarded the 2023 Augusta Health Leadership of Excellence Award. Daily Nurse is proud to name her our Nurse of the Week.
Other leaders seek her out for her enthusiasm, innovative problem-solving, and patient/community-centeredness because Shomo leads from her heart, is compassionate, and cares for others personally and professionally to foster growth and trust.
Shomo knew she wanted to be a nurse; it had always interested her. So when she was 18, she started working at Augusta Health as a clerk in the Emergency Department and became a nurse in the Emergency Department after receiving her associate degree in nursing from Virginia Western Community College. Then she returned for her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Eastern Mennonite University. Eight years were spent in the Augusta Health Emergency Department when Shomo and her husband decided to travel around the U.S performing emergency nursing in multiple states and hospitals.
As a nurse in the ED and traveler, Shomo learned to adapt and became a fast learner. She consistently sought learning opportunities and happily returned to Augusta Heath in 2018 to be a nurse in Post-Anesthesia Care (PACU)/Outpatient Surgery (OPS). She later transitioned to a leadership role in 2021.
“When we were done traveling, we knew we wanted to return home to Augusta County,” explains Shomo. “Being from a small community within Augusta County, traveling to many hospitals across the United States, Augusta Health was where I wanted to return to work and continue serving the community I was raised in.”
At Augusta Health, she is known for her love of orienting new employees and students, which translates to her wanting them to stay at Augusta Health. She keeps nurses happy by improving unit productivity, morale, and patient experience. She enjoys celebrating birthdays, holidays, and special events. Her units have fun in the workplace, including Easter Egg hunts and cookie bake exchanges.
Shomo recently completed the Virginia Nurses Associate leadership training and was instrumental during the Pathway to Excellence journey and survey. When asked what values are essential to her as a leader, Shomo says, “being respectful, communicating, being honest, dedicated, held accountable, and compassionate.”
Shomo and her team go above and beyond to provide their patients the best experience and care. As a mentor, she says, “Each day, you will learn from others and teach others. Share your love, kindness, and the unique gifts you have with everyone you meet. Always stay true to who you are and what you believe in. If your gut is telling you it doesn’t seem right, it’s probably not. You should ALWAYS listen and ALWAYS advocate for your patient. Treat each patient as your mother, father, brother, sister, or loved one because they are someone’s loved one. You will never know your impact but know in your heart that you make a difference in someone’s life daily.”
Nominate a Nurse of the Week! Every Wednesday, DailyNurse.com features a nurse making a difference in the lives of their patients, students, and colleagues. We encourage you to nominate a nurse who has impacted your life as the next Nurse of the Week, and we’ll feature them online and in our weekly newsletter.
Emergency nurses who expect the unexpected in their ED know the ability to rapidly and accurately triage patients can make all the difference when every second counts for providing the best care possible.
Although patient assessment skills are vital, research has found that triage accuracy rates vary widely. As a result, the Emergency Nurses Association released the Emergency Severity Index Handbook, 5th Edition, and ESI 2.0 online course to ensure timely and precise patient assessments.
“It cannot be overstated, strong triage education and training absolutely helps save lives in the emergency department,” says ENA President Terry Foster, MSN, RN, CEN, CPEN, CCRN, TCRN, FAEN. “Every emergency nurse, regardless of experience, can benefit from the type of triage education included in these ESI resources.”
The latest handbook update includes the following:
Evidence-driven assessment tools
Clarifying language to prevent misinterpretation
Looking into how racism, bias, and stigmas can lead to inaccurate triage decisions
In addition, the all-new course exam includes numerous patient case examples that truly test how a nurse applies ESI.
ESI was created in 1998 to give nurses a triage resource to assist them with determining patient acuity based on their presentation and the expected level of care they will require. In 2019, ENA acquired the ESI five-level triage system used by nearly every emergency nurse in the U.S.
For more information on ESI and ENA’s triage education offerings, visit ena.org/triage.
