BCEN awards trauma nurse
The Board of Certification for Emergency Nursing (BCEN) in the US, the benchmark for board certification across the emergency nursing spectrum, has announced that Julie Donnelly, Director of patient care services at the Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, is the recipient of BCEN’s 2021 Distinguished TCRN Award
This annual national award recognizes one top Trauma Certified Registered Nurse (TCRN) for their advocacy for trauma care excellence through trauma nursing specialty certification.
Held by nearly 6,200 nurses and introduced just five years ago, the TCRN is trauma nursing’s highest professional credential. Nurses who earn the TCRN must demonstrate advanced clinical knowledge and expertise across the continuum of trauma care from injury prevention to acute care to rehabilitation. Trauma is a major public health issue, and trauma nurses play a leading and highly collaborative role in trauma care.
Specialty certifications contribute to better nursing
“Julie’s phenomenal success in supporting nurses to earn their TCRN trauma certification sets a prime example of how specialty certification contributes to better trauma nursing and better trauma patient care,” said BCEN CEO Janie Schumaker. “She is a true champion for trauma excellence.”
Led and spurred by Julie’s work, the certification rate of Thomas Jefferson University Hospital emergency department nurses with at least three years of experience has increased from 38 per cent to 100 per cent, and the certification rates in all of the hospital’s trauma-designated units consistently exceed the average certification rate across all nursing units. Thomas Jefferson University Hospital is an accredited Level I Regional Resource Trauma Center.
A team award for Jefferson
“When the TCRN was introduced, we were so excited to have a certification just for trauma that we could offer to nurses in the trauma bay and in our intermediate and ICU trauma-designated units,” said Donnelly. “I am truly honored to receive this award. I see it as a team award for Jefferson and all of the trauma nurses here, not just me.”
Last year, BCEN launched BCEN Learn, an education platform for nurses and nurse leaders practicing in emergency, paediatric emergency, trauma and critical care transport settings.