GERIATRIC NURSING CERTIFICATION TOOLKIT

A GUIDE TO PROMOTING GERONTOLOGICAL NURSING CERTIFICATION IN A HEALTH SYSTEM

The Hartford Institute for Geriatric Nursing Specialty Nursing Initiative and NICHE are proud to announce a Certification Tool Kit to guide health systems to promote gerontological nursing certification to their nurses. Gerontological Nurse Certification recognizes specialization in caring for the booming population of older adults.

Adults age 65 and older utilize 48% of the nation's total health care resources and represent approximately 38% of all admissions to hospitals (DeFrances & Hall, 2007; (Mezey, Quinlan, Fairchild, & Vezina, 2006). More than 13.2 million persons aged 65 and older in 2005 were discharged from short stay hospitals; this represents a rate of 3,596 for every 10,000 older patients which is over three times the comparable rate for patients of all ages (U.S. Administration on Aging, 2007). The aging trend will continue, with sustained and profound implications for nursing practice.

Learn more about the value of certification to nurses, nurse managers and administrators, its implication on care of older adults in healthsystems, and also on how to launch a certification initiative:
View the Certification Tool Kit.