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The Accreditation Program and processes are currently in transition to a more refined business model. Learn more... |
Accreditation is a voluntary process by which ANCC reviews and accredits an organization providing continuing nursing education to ensure that its programs are designed using pre-determined national education design criteria. The essential purpose of this system is to provide professional nursing judgment on the quality of the continuing nursing education offered. The ANCC Accreditation Program is based on the philosophy that learning activities, as a component of nursing professional development, must assist nurses in developing and maintaining their continuing competence, enhance their professional practice, and support achievement of their career goals.
ANCC evaluates these learning activities based on national standards of educational design criteria. The criteria includes planning, needs assessment, purpose and objectives, implementation, activity evaluation, and outcomes evaluation.
ANCC accreditation helps nurses to select the highest quality educational programs.
ANCC Accreditation
- Accredits eligible providers of continuing nursing education (CNE) — organizations that plan, deliver, and implement continuing education programs — that meet ANCC Accreditation standards.
- Accredits eligible approvers of continuing nursing education (CNE) — constituent members of ANA, specialty nursing organizations, federal nursing services — that can assume sole responsibility for governing the peer review process to evaluate CNE accreditation applications using the ANCC Accreditation standards
- Utilizes the American Nurses Association Scope and Standards of Nursing Professional Development and the Code of Ethics for Nurses with Interpretive Statements as foundational documents.
- Providers and approvers must demonstrate the capacity to adhere to their own goals and their own processes over an extended period of time
Benefits of ANCC Accreditation
- Recognition by most state licensing boards for continuing education requirements
- Demonstrates achievement of a high standard of excellence and assures the quality of the CNE program
- Provides an avenue through which nurses can maintain professional competence
- Promotes commitment to high quality nursing practice