I’m very excited today to bring you information on a new Nurse Coach Certification program. Up until now there has not been a nationally recognized accredited nurse coaching program for all registered nurses.

Yes, there are companies out there that certified you by their standards and practices but they are programs opened to the public, not specific to nurses. Don’t get me wrong, these programs are great and as you will see below they are required for you to qualify to take the Nurse Coach Examination.

Starting September 1, 2012 the American Holistic Nurses’ Certification Corporation (AHNCC) which is the board that certifies nurses in Holistic Nursing, will be accepting applications for a new program called Professional Nurse Coaches Certification Program.

What are the qualifications?

This Nurse Coach Certification program is for registered nurses only (RN) and for nurses in the United States. Sorry, not available for LPN/LVN at this time, hopefully that will change.

Here’s a list of eligibility criteria with a link below for more info:

• An active and current US RN license
• An ADN, BSN or higher education from an accredited institution
• Practicing as an RN full time for the past 2 years or a minimum of 4,000 hours in the past 5 years
• 60 hours of continuing education acquired over the past 5 years consistent with Nurse Core Values (see link below)
• 60 hours experience that has been mentored and/ or supervised by a Certified Coach

This is where a Certified Coaching program comes into play.

But if you are like me, who took a course but was never mentored or supervised by a certified coach than you may need more education to qualify.   I took a 7 week course on life coaching that involved spending 70 minutes on the phone with a group going over reading materila that was included in the program, not the best way to learn.

Choose a program that is supervised by a certified coach and allows you to be coached as well as you doing the coaching, this is the best way to learn.

Qualifying Certified Coaching programs

• International Coaching Federation
• Integrative Health Coach Professional Training
• Institute of Coaching
• Wellcoaches School of Coaching
• Bark Coaching Institute
• The Integrative Nurse Coach Certification Program
• University of Minnesota, Center for Spirituality and Healing Certificate in Integrative Therapies and Healing Practices: Health Coaching

If you have been through any of these programs, great! But if you haven’t and have been working as a nurse coach you may need to contact the AHNCC for more information on whether or not you qualify.

Click here – American Holistic Nurses’ Certification Corporation - for more information and downloadable word documents that explain further what the Professional Nurse Coach Certification is about and who qualifies to take the examination.

For years I have been telling nurses who ask the number one question – how to become certified as a nurse coach?

My answer has been to become certified in Holistic Nursing which I believe is the foundation for becoming a great coach and what Florence Nightingale envisioned all nurses should be practicing; now there is a new certification program on the block.

I do have a question for the AHNCC – Does this mean Nurse Coaching is now a Nursing Specialty?

Maybe someone out there can answer this question. I’ll also be asking the AHNCC, I’ll keep you posted.

Let me know what your thoughts are on this topic. Are you a nurse who has been practicing coaching for many years? Are you certified from any of the programs listed above? Would love to hear your thoughts, share so we all can learn.