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Diplomates of Comprehensive Care

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The DCC certification examination is accredited by the National Commission for Certifying Agencies. This examination distinguishes DNP graduates that have achieved a high level of competence in comprehensive care. This group includes those that have attained and those interested in pursuing certification.

Website: http://www.abcc.dnpcert.org/
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Latest Activity: May 9

ABCC exam received national accreditation

American Board of Comprehensive Care Receives National Accreditation

NEW YORK, NY (January 16, 2012) – The American Board of Comprehensive Care (ABCC), based at CUSON, is an independent organization founded in 2007 for the purpose of certifying nurse practitioner graduates of Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) programs who have met defined and accepted standards for comprehensive care. The ABCC Diplomate of Comprehensive Care (DCC) program and its certification exam have now been accredited by the National Commission for Certifying Agencies.

With this newly granted historic designation, the ABCC/DCC program becomes the only organization nationally recognized to offer a certifying examination for DNP graduates in the provision of care throughout the life span and across clinical settings.

“The ABCC/DCC program’s accreditation is a major milestone in ongoing efforts to make this Diplomate status a standard for DNPs nationwide and a symbol of their ability to deliver high-quality, comprehensive clinical care,” said CUSON Dean Bobbie Berkowitz, PhD, RN, FAAN. “Such standardized assessments of clinical competence are essential if the U.S. health care system is to have the supply of highly qualified nurse practitioners it so badly needs in the coming years."

CUSON has been a pioneer in clinical doctoral education, with a 25-year history of building independent faculty practice. The CUSON faculty practice model and findings from the randomized clinical trial that demonstrated equivalency in outcomes of care between advanced practice nurses and primary care physicians (JAMA, 2000), served as the basis for the school’s development of the first nursing clinical doctorate.

The ABCC is an autonomous arm of the Council for the Advancement of Comprehensive Care (CACC), which was established in 2000. The Council is a consortium of distinguished nurse, physician, public policy and academic leaders. CACC’s mission is to develop and promulgate the clinical doctoral role and measurable standards of practice through certification.
In order to distinguish DNP graduates who have achieved a high level of competence in comprehensive care, CACC established the certifying board ABCC, and worked with the National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME) to develop the ABCC certification exam. The NBME develops and manages a number of competency exams, including the United States Medical Licensing Examination® (USMLE®).

All four ABCC Examinations, through the most current administration in 2011, have been comparable in content, similar in format, measure the same set of competencies and apply similar performance standards as Step 3 of the USMLE, which is administered to physicians as the final component of qualifying for licensure. Those who pass the ABCC exam are awarded a DCC designation.

“As the need for comprehensive care in this country dramatically increases, Diplomates of Comprehensive Care offer the public a nationally recognized standard, which is consistent with the new Consensus Model for Advanced Practice Registered Nurse Regulation: Licensure, Accreditation, Certification and Education,” said ABCC Board Chair Janice Smolowitz, EdD, DNP, ANP-BC, DCC, Professor of Clinical Nursing and Senior Associate Dean at CUSON.

The ABCC and its programs are supported by grants from foundations and universities, as well as examination fees, and revenues from certification-related activities. ABCC sponsors have included: the federal government, New York State, the Josiah Macy Foundation, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, the Teagle Foundation, the Commonwealth Foundation, the Arthur Vining Davis Foundations, the Stavros Niarchos Foundation, and many other private donations. For more information about the ABCC, go to http://www.abcc.dnpcert.org.

Posted: 01/13/2012

Discussion Forum

Certification Maintenance Program Guidelines 3 Replies

http://www.abcc.dnpcert.org/maintenanceGuidelines.shtml Continue

Started by Sue Doyle, DNP. Last reply by Sue Doyle, DNP May 9.

DNP Project 2 Replies

Hello,I am a FNP-DNP student and am very interested in conducting a DNP project that concerns the ABCC exam. I will begin working on my project the middle of 2013 after completing my FNP…Continue

Tags: of, Comprehensive, Care, Diplomate, DCC

Started by Renate Flynn. Last reply by Sue Doyle, DNP Jun 25, 2012.

DCC exam 4 Replies

Hi Donna,As a DNP that chose to take the exam, I can only give opinion on why the exam is important and the impressions I have based on the ABCC website description. This exam is specific to clinical…Continue

Started by Sue Doyle, DNP. Last reply by JoAnn C. Green MSN, RN, CCNS Apr 3, 2012.

New recertification requirements to maintain 6 Replies

Have any diplomates of comprehensive care reviewed the new recertification requirements posted on ABCC site. I took the exam and was certified in 2009. There are 2 options. The first is to retake…Continue

Started by Valerie.Layne, DNP, FNP-BC, DCC. Last reply by Janice Smolowitz Apr 5, 2011.

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Comment by Sue Doyle, DNP on May 10, 2012 at 7:49am: Lety, I have heard that pictures were taken and they will be sent to you when they are available.

Comment by Lety Costa EdDNP.DCC.PAC.CWS.CDE on May 9, 2012 at 1:46pm: Do you have pictures of the induction cermony for 2012?

Thanks,

Lety

Comment by Sue Doyle, DNP on May 1, 2012 at 11:55am: Great photo!!!

Comment by Kristene Diggins, DNP, DCC on May 1, 2012 at 11:44am: So thankful for the privilege of being a newly certified DCC!

Comment by Ella Ares, DNP, DCC on April 30, 2012 at 7:17pm: Lety and Noel, it was such a privilege meeting you!

Comment by Lety Costa EdDNP.DCC.PAC.CWS.CDE on April 29, 2012 at 11:14pm

The purpose of the American Board of Comprehensive Care exam is to determine if a DNP can apply the medical knowledge and understanding of clinical science considered essential for the practice of medicine, with emphasis on patient management in ambulatory care settings. The ABCC of certification ensures that attention is devoted to the importance of assessing the knowledge and skills of DNPS who are assuming independent responsibility for providing general medical care to patients.

The ABCC emphasizes selected DNPS tasks, namely, evaluating severity of patient problems and managing therapy. Assessment of clinical judgment will be prominent.

Clinical problems involve mainstream, high-impact diseases. Provision is made for less common but important clinical problems as well.
Test items and cases are patient centered, starting with a description of a clinical encounter (vignette). Both the multiple-choice items and case simulations pose action-related challenges that require clinical decisions or judgment.
Emphasis is on ambulatory patient encounters; however, inpatient encounters of significant complexity and reflecting contemporary trends also are represented.
Provision is made for incorporating applied basic and clinical science concepts, especially as they relate to justification for prognosis or management.

Comment by NOEL E. URSUA, DNP, FNP-BC, DCC on April 28, 2012 at 4:04am: It was such a nice event. I am glad that I was able to attend. I now realize, more than ever, how important this examination was. This is a step towards cementing this degree as a legitimate part of the healthcare arena. We are well on our way in establishing parity with all other healthcare discipline.

Comment by Sue Doyle, DNP on April 25, 2012 at 6:40am: I wish I could have been there, what a great event!!!! So glad you enjoyed Kristene!

Comment by Margaret A. Fitzgerald on April 24, 2012 at 9:56pm: Oh, now I am even sadder that I missed the reception! But there was simply nothing I could do with my commitment that day in Chicago. So happy it was a special event.