BCEN Elevates Burn Nurses, Advances Burn Specialty Care with CBRN Certification

“Where Excellence and Compassion Meet Courage and Resilience”

OAK BROOK, IL (October 17, 2024) – One year after launching the world’s first burn nursing specialty certification, the Board of Certification for Emergency Nursing (BCEN) reports there are nearly 500 nurses practicing in civilian and military settings who have earned the Certified Burn Registered Nurse (CBRN) credential.

Burns are among the most devastating and complex injuries, and research shows that burn care expertise contributes to high quality care and optimal patient outcomes. To earn the CBRN credential, registered nurses (RNs) and advanced practice nurses (APRNs) must pass a rigorous exam that validates their advanced clinical and professional knowledge across every phase of burn care—including prehospital and initial management, acute and critical care, patient and family support, rehabilitation, aftercare, and education and injury prevention.

“Burn nurses play a vital role in caring for burn survivors, providing physical and psychosocial support,” said Johns Hopkins Burn Center Burn Program Coordinator and BCEN board member Emily Werthman, PhD, RN, CBRN. “Burn nurses are unique for their ability to combine medical acumen with learned skills to assist survivors in psychological recovery, and the CBRN provides a visible way for burn nurses to demonstrate their excellence.”

“The compassion and level of commitment exemplified by nurses who earn the CBRN mirror the extraordinary courage and resilience of patients with burn injuries,” said BCEN CEO Janie Schumaker, MBA, BSN, RN, CEN, ICE-CCP, CENP, CPHQ, FABC.

At the CBRN’s one-year mark, BCEN:

Now has sufficient data to pursue accreditation of the CBRN certification program by the Accreditation Board for Specialty Nursing Certification (ABSNC), which has accredited BCEN’s five other specialty certifications.
Is offering a $25 discount on the CBRN certification exam fee throughout October, which is stackable with standing discounts for American Burn Association (ABA) members and U.S. military service members, veterans and reservists.
Offers continuing education (CE) courses and free CE webinars on burn care topics, with more in development, plus a CBRN practice exam on its award-winning BCEN Learn online platform.
Has updated the research-backed Commitment to Excellence series backgrounder, “Burn Nursing Excellence: The Certified Burn Registered Nurse.”

After partnering with the ABA and burn nurse experts starting in June 2021 to develop the initial CBRN certification exam, BCEN launched the CBRN certification program worldwide on October 17, 2023. View and track CBRN milestones.

About BCEN

Founded in 1980, the independent, not-for-profit Board of Certification for Emergency Nursing (BCEN®) offers robust nursing specialty certification programs fostering empowered nurses across the emergency spectrum who contribute noticeably to patient care, safety and outcomes. Over 60,000 BCEN credentials are held by RNs who specialize in emergency, pediatric emergency, flight, critical care ground transport, trauma, and burn nursing. BCEN offers the Certified Emergency Nurse (CEN®), Certified Pediatric Emergency Nurse (CPEN®), Certified Flight Registered Nurse (CFRN®), Certified Transport Registered Nurse (CTRN®), Trauma Certified Registered Nurse (TCRN®), and Certified Burn Registered Nurse (CBRN) certification programs.

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CONTACT: Maris Panjada | Director of Marketing & Communications | mpanjada@bcen.org or 630-339-4530