I just finished reading your editorial (March 2005) regarding the lack of any outcry by the home health industry regarding the loss of the home health certification.

Why should I care that this certification has lapsed when it has never been an option to most home care nurses? Advanced certification is a great thing (I held a CRNI for almost 10 years); however, the requirement of a 4-year degree has VERY effectively blocked most home care nurses from achieving certification.

I have been in home care for more than 20 years, and am not eligible for certification and have never worked with a home health-certified RN.

The ANCC would better support nursing credentialing by not requiring advanced degrees for so many certifications. Any RN who can pass the exam should be considered "qualified" for the certification, regardless of the level of college completed. If a 2-year nurse who has practiced in the specialty for many years is prohibited from ever achieving certification for lack of 2 additional years of college, we do our profession NO good. The public does not know the difference between an RN with 2 or 4 years of college; the profession should also not make this distinction.

I agree that it would be great to certify home care nurses in our specialty. Tell me why this exam cannot be opened to all RNs? Several of our clinicians are working toward the OASIS Certificate because this is one exam open to any RN. If more than 60% of nurses hold an associate degree, the ANCC is not meeting the needs of most of the nurses-nor of the population-by requiring "certified" nurses to hold a baccalaureate degree.

Karen McFadden, RN

Sebring, Florida