Critical Thinking, Confidence and Sense of Pride and Accomplishment Top the List
of Perceived Benefits of CTRN Certification
of Perceived Benefits of CTRN Certification
OAK BROOK, IL (February 15, 2023) – According to a peer-reviewed original research article in the January/February 2023 issue of Air Medical Journal, nurses who hold the Certified Transport Registered Nurse (CTRN) credential are “highly experienced and perceive multiple intrinsic and extrinsic benefits of CTRN certification, many of which are essential to safe, evidence-based nursing practice in the highly autonomous, complex and dynamic ground transport environment.”
“The 2022 Certified Transport Registered Nurse Pulse Survey” highlights findings from the first value of certification survey of nurses who hold the CTRN credential, a national specialty certification for critical care ground transport RNs offered by the Board of Certification for Emergency Nursing (BCEN).
“Air Medical Journal values this important and first-of-its kind research at the intersection of critical care ground transport nursing and specialty certification—both of which are vital to delivering advanced care in the challenging and dynamic out-of-hospital environment,” said Air Medical Journal co-editor Eric
R. Swanson, MD, FACEP, University of Utah School of Medicine, Division of Emergency Medicine, Salt Lake City, Utah.
To earn the CTRN credential, nurses must pass a rigorous exam whose content spans not only clinical knowledge and professional issues specific to ground transports but also safety, survival, disaster preparedness, scene operations management, communications, and equipment and vehicle knowledge. As the article’s authors write, this makes the CTRN “one of the most complex and multifaceted nursing specialty certification programs.”
While the number of CTRNs has grown steadily since the credential was introduced in 2006, the number of CTRN-certified nurses has surged over the past three years, increasing by 19% in 2020, 29% in 2021, and 24% in 2022.
Conducted in March 2022, the survey included nursing career and practice environment demographics, ground transport frequency and the value of CTRN certification during the COVID-19 pandemic, and an evaluation of the CTRN across 10 value of certification categories.
According to the respondents:
- The top three perceived benefits of being a CTRN are a sense of accomplishment and pride (95%), confidence as a ground transport nurse (88%), and critical thinking in the ground transport environment (88%)
- 43% have more than 10 years of ground transport nursing experience
- 46% are employed by a stand-alone transport program, and another 25% work for a university/academic hospital or university/academic trauma program
- 43% said ground transports make up at least half of their current role, with 25% doing ground transports exclusively
- 62% said being a CTRN “contributed to their ability to deliver the best possible care” to patients with COVID-19, and 51% reported doing more ground transports since the start of the pandemic