BCEN Honors Top Board Certified Emergency, Trauma, Flight and Critical Care Ground Transport Nurses with 2024 Distinguished Awards

RNs Recognized for Clinical Excellence, Professionalism and Advocacy in Five Specialties

OAK BROOK, IL (May 2, 2024) – The Board of Certification for Emergency Nursing (BCEN), the benchmark for specialty certification across the emergency spectrum, today announced the 2024 winners of its annual BCEN Distinguished Awards. These awards recognize top board certified emergency, trauma, flight, and critical care ground transport RNs who demonstrate an exceptional commitment to clinical excellence and professionalism through specialty certification as well as leadership and innovation in supporting other nurses to earn national specialty credentials.

Specialty board certification is a rigorous and voluntary process that independently validates a nurse’s advanced knowledge, clinical judgment and professionalism across an entire nursing specialty based on standards identified by the specialty to promote optimal health outcomes. Research links nursing specialty certification with improved patient, nurse and healthcare organization outcomes.

“Through their unflagging commitment to clinical excellence and professionalism, and in very personal and innovative ways that elevate their teams and organizations and benefit their patients and communities, the 2024 BCEN Distinguished Award honorees show us just how impactful emergency, trauma and transport nurses can be when they practice at the top of their specialty,” said BCEN CEO Janie Schumaker, MBA, BSN, RN, CEN, CENP, CPHQ, FABC. “These five nurses represent national specialty certification at its best.”

The 2024 BCEN Distinguished Award honorees are:

Distinguished CEN Award (emergency): Tina Owens, BS, RN, CEN, CCRN, CRSN, CNML, MEDSURG-BC, NHDP-BC, Administrative Director of Clinical Quality at Buchanan General Hospital in Grundy, Virginia
Distinguished CPEN Award (pediatric emergency): Jordan McAdam, BSN, RN, CPEN, Emergency Department Registered Nurse and Clinical Coach at Northern Navajo Medical Center in Shiprock, New Mexico
Distinguished TCRN Award (trauma): Jamin Rankin, BSN, RN, CEN, CFRN, TCRN, CPEN, CTRN, Trauma Program Manager with Ochsner LSU Health System in Monroe, Louisiana
Distinguished CFRN Award (flight): Tyler Reeves, RN, NRP, CFRN, CEN, Flight Nurse/Paramedic, Base QA Coordinator and Clinical Coach with EagleMed in Great Bend, Kansas
Distinguished CTRN Award (critical care ground transport): Austin Johnson, BSN, RN, EMT-P, C-NPT, CBRN, CCRN, CEN, CFRN, CPEN, CTRN, TCRN, Critical Care Transport Nurse with AdventHealth Orlando in Orlando, Florida

Read about each winner’s accomplishments on their Meet the Winner page, which also includes photos and comments from their employer and nominator. BCEN will present each winner with a Distinguished Award pin and trophy at individual workplace celebrations in the coming months.

Over 50,000 RNs and advanced practice registered nurses in 28 countries hold one or more BCEN nursing specialty credential as follows: over 40,500 hold the Certified Emergency Nurse (CEN), over 5,400 hold the Certified Pediatric Emergency Nurse (CPEN), over 7,700 hold the Trauma Certified Registered Nurse (TCRN), over 6,400 hold the Certified Flight Registered Nurse (CFRN), and nearly 500 hold the Certified Transport Registered Nurse (CTRN). BCEN’s newest certification is the Certified Burn Registered Nurse (CBRN). Held by over 400 RNs, the CBRN was just introduced worldwide in fall 2023.

Upcoming Organizational Award Deadline

BCEN also recognizes organizations committed to supporting nurses’ professional development through national specialty certification with its annual BCEN National Certification Champion Awards. Nominations for this year’s National Certification Champion Awards are open June 1 – July 15, 2024. Hospital-based and freestanding emergency departments, trauma centers, health systems, and flight and ground transport programs are encouraged to apply.

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 registered nurses (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). The CEN, CPEN, CFRN, CTRN and TCRN certification programs are accredited by the Accreditation Board for Specialty Nursing Certification (ABSNC) and are ANCC Magnet-accepted. Learn more at bcen.org.

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CONTACT: Hilde Marnul, Director of Marketing & Communications | hmarnul@bcen.org | 630-352-0811