In the 2018 first quarter Horizons newsletter, (www.nbrc.org) the National Board for Respiratory Care published policy changes regarding voluntary recredentialing and admission criteria for the Neonatal / Pediatric Respiratory Care Specialty Examination.
Eliminating the Voluntary Recredentialing Route
Please be advised the NBRC Board of Trustees voted to eliminate the voluntary recredentialing route for all NBRC examinations effective January 1, 2018. This decision was made to better increase examination security and strengthen the link between examination scores and long-term competence levels.
Individuals required to attempt an NBRC examination for state licensing purposes must submit a paper application and fee to our office for processing, along with a letter indicating they are required to take the examination for state licensure purposes.
This change does not affect therapists in New Jersey, as maintaining a credential is not required for licensure renewal.
Neonatal / Pediatric Respiratory Care Specialty Examination Policy Change
The Board of Trustees has approved the elimination of the following admissions provision for the NPS Examination: Applicant shall be a Certified Respiratory Therapist (CRT) for at least one year prior to applying for the Neonatal/Pediatric Respiratory Care Specialty Examination.
The removal of this admissions provision was approved on a second reading at the December 2017 meeting by a unanimous vote of the Board of Trustees and is now official policy.
The removal of this admissions provision will be in effect with the implementation of new test specifications for this examination starting October 10, 2018.Individuals who have held the CRT credential for one year are currently still eligible to apply for the NPS Examination until June 30, 2018 and can schedule an examination appointment up to 90 days after the application is approved, through October 9, 2018.
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