Continuing Education Program Approval

IMPORTANT: The CE Provider Status Option is discontinued for 2008. Click on the link for details.

• No first-time submissions will be accepted after December 31, 2007.
• Renewal submissions will only be accepted if they meet the conditions outlined in discontinuation letter.

Introduction

The American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) is committed to professional development activities that assist critical care nurses in contributing to the care of acute and critically ill patients and their families. Our Continuing Education Approval staff reviews a variety of course offerings to verify that they meet professional education standards. Programs may provide participants with contact hours for:
· voluntary certification or recertification requirements, such as CERPs
· institutional continuing education requirements
· renewal of licensure (check with your State Board of Nursing).

AACN's Continuing Education Program Approval activities are not affiliated with, or accredited by, any other nursing organization. “AACN approval” signifies that the program or providership has undergone review by AACN staff and has met our requirements. AACN does not guarantee that other organizations, institutions or State boards of nursing will accept contact hours from AACN-approved programs or Providers.
Please check with your State's Board of Nursing for specific contact hour requirements.

Click on the following link for information regarding AACN continuing education approval.

CE Program Approval– approval of a single program for one (1) year. See the Application Handbook for detailed information on each option.


Program Approval - Commonly Asked Questions

Q I’ve just mailed in my application for CE approval; however, I need to send my brochure to the printer today to get it printed in time for our mailing. I know my application hasn’t been evaluated, but I would like to let nurses who are interested in attending this program know that we’re working on getting CE approval through AACN. Can I say that approval is pending?
A We understand the effort involved in coordinating a continuing education program; however, we CANNOT allow statements such as "approval is pending" or "this program has been submitted for approval" to be published. Sponsors may publish such statements only AFTER approval has been granted. We recommend you submit applications for CE approval far in advance of your printing and other deadlines.

Q I recently received a letter of approval for a program we submitted. What language can I use to advertise this approval, and how should this be stated on the certificate of completion?
A The following statement must be used in advertising and on the certificate of completion once your program has received approval from our office:
This program has been approved by the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) for _____ Contact Hours, Category______ , file number______.

Q Our organization has a program that we give several times a year. Do we pay the fee each time we give the program?
A No. Once you receive approval of your program, the term of approval is for one year. You can give your program an unlimited number of times within that year without paying an additional fee. The initial fee is for the processing and evaluation of your program.


xHandbook & Application

The current CE Program Approval Handbook & Application, which includes instructions and applications for CE program approval and CE provider status, is now available as either a Word document or a PDF file.

Click here for CE Program Approval Handbook (in Word format).

Click here for the CE Program Approval Handbook (in PDF format). (Note: PDF requires Acrobat reader; scroll down to get Adobe Acrobat.)

If possible, please complete your application in Word and submit it via e-mail, following these instructions:

1. Click on the above Word icon to open the document.
2. Save the file to the hard drive or user drive on your PC.
3. Read the entire document, either on screen, or print out.
4. Copy and paste the appropriate application forms into a new Word document.
For example: Provider status applicants will copy and paste the Provider Status Cover Sheet, and copy and paste three times the Program Information Form into the new Word document.
5. Complete the form fields on the application forms using Word. E-mail application fees payable only by credit card.
6. Save the new file as your Primary Sponsoring Organization Name.doc unless you are a renewing Provider. Renewing Providers please save the file as your Provider#.doc.
7. E-mail the file to programapproval@aacn.org.
8. If you have any questions please e-mail programapproval@aacn.org or call 800-809-2273 x364.

If you do not have Adobe Acrobat, this free program can be loaded on your computer by clicking the icon below.