In late July, more than 20 leaders from diverse nursing and health groups held a day-long meeting in Arlington, Virginia to validate the content of the Draft Revised Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS) Statement on Clinical Nursing Specialist Practice and Education, 3rd Edition. The Draft, which took three years to develop, was shaped by a panel of CNSs that included experts in education, practice and research. The final version of the Statement will provide guidance on the role of the CNS and the use of educational guidelines and core competencies in education and practice.
The National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists (NACNS) invited experts from around the country, as well as more than 40 nursing organizations, to provide feedback prior to the meeting, to help identify sections of the document that needed attention from Content Validation Panel members. The meeting to review and validate this content included experts from the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN), AACN Certification Corporation, American Nurses Association, National League for Nursing and the Oncology Nursing Society. The content validation process was based on work by Mary J. Lynn (1986) in her article published in Nursing Research.
“We are deeply grateful to every member of our Content Validation Panel, all of whom gave generously of their time and expertise at our meeting,” said NACNS Board President Anne Hysong, MSN, APRN, CCNS, ACNS-BC. “I was so pleased to see such a wide range of CNSs in attendance. In addition to representing different national nursing and health groups, we had novice and highly experienced CNSs and those who work in diverse settings, from community health centers to academic teaching hospital clinical settings. The July meeting was an essential step that will result in an even stronger Statement, which is foundational to the clinical nurse specialist profession.”
The final third edition of the CNS Statement will be published this Fall.
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Founded in 1995, The National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists is the only association representing the clinical nurse specialist (CNS). CNSs are advanced practice registered nurses who work in a variety of specialties to ensure high-quality, evidence-based, patient-centered care. As leaders in health care settings, CNSs provide direct patient care and lead initiatives to improve care and clinical outcomes, and reduce costs. NACNS is dedicated to advancing CNS practice and education, removing certification and regulatory barriers, and assuring the public access to quality CNS services.