National Clinical Nurse Specialist Recognition Week (CNS Week) – SEPTEMBER 1-7

It’s time for the 14th annual National Clinical Nurse Specialists (CNS) Recognition Week. As a CNS myself, I want to celebrate the almost 93,000 CNSs out there in the United States of America and Canada (NACNS, 2023a) — and the many CNSs practicing in other countries!

What is CNS Recognition Week? 

CNS Recognition Week is a time when hospitals and healthcare systems pay tribute to the valuable role clinical nurse specialists play in healthcare and draw attention to the essential work and vital role clinical nurse specialists play in healthcare delivery (NACNS, 2022).

CNS Recognition Week is celebrated the first week in September in the U.S. to commemorate the birth of Dr. Hildegard Peplau, a nurse theorist and creator of the CNS role (CNS, 2022). CNS Week is all about celebrating and paying tribute to the valuable part CNSs play in health care. Click here to learn more about Dr. Peplau and why she is important to CNSs. 

CNS Week Theme

The theme for this year is Lead the Next Generation. CNSs assess, plan, promote, evaluate, and advocate for patients and their families, healthcare systems and organizations, and the nursing profession as a whole. 

NACNS is offering a free webinar – click on the red link to register.

Join NACNS President Mitzi Saunders, PhD, APRN, ACNS-BC, on Thursday, September 7, 2023, @ 8 AM PT / 9 AM MT / 11 AM ET, as she closes out CNS Week 2023 with her webinar, Leading the Next Generation: Unveiling NACNS Achievements & Advancements for the CNS Role.

In this webinar, President Mitzi Saunders will:

• Share the abundance of wins and momentum the CNS role and NACNS itself have had this year
• Discuss what is to come for the CNS role and NACNS
• Strategize on how to promote the role further in the healthcare system

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What is a CNS?

A CNS is an advanced practice registered nurse (APRN) who has additional training in a specialized area of nursing at the master’s or doctoral level. CNSs combine clinical expertise, a specialty focus, and influence in three major areas (patients, nurses, and organizations/systems) to improve healthcare delivery and promote best practices for positive patient, staff, and organizational outcomes (NACNS Task Force, 2010).

CNS core competencies include providing advanced direct patient care, evidence-based practice, quality improvement, consultation, systems leadership, systems thinking, collaboration, coaching, ethical decision-making, moral agency, and advocacy (NACNS Task Force, 2010). The CNS core competencies are included in the revised edition of the CNS Statement on Clinical Nurse Specialist Practice and Education (2018).

CNS Recognition Week is a perfect time to celebrate CNSs and bring attention to the role, and for hospitals and health care systems to pay tribute to the valuable part CNSs play in health care and health care delivery. (NACNS, 2022)

 

Consider Becoming a CNS!

This is an excellent time to consider becoming a CNS. One result of the recent CNS Census, undertaken by the National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists (NACNS), showed that almost one-third of the CNS respondents indicated they were planning to retire within 5 years (NACNS, 2023b)!

CNSs are the original Translators of Evidence into Practice, promoting positive outcomes for their patients, families, nursing colleagues, and organizations. If you are interested in advancing your education to change practice and lead the next generation of nurses, read on for more information on what a CNS is and why they are vital members of the healthcare team!

Get to Know Your CNS!

So, if you are lucky enough to have a CNS assigned to your unit or service line, find out more about them and their contributions to your unit, service line, and organization. Use them to help you translate evidence into practice! NACNS and the CNS Institute have posted the winning videos of the 2019 CNS Institute Video Competition! Watch these inspiring videos about the CNS here.

An excellent blog post on CNS Practice entitled Clinical Nurse Specialists: Leaders in Improving Patient Outcomes by Deborah Klein can be found on the AACN website (2021) Click on the link to access.

For more information about the CNS and what they do, visit the National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists website. You can learn more about the plans to celebrate the CNS and download the CNS Celebration Toolkit from NACNS. 

Future Blog Post: Trying to decide among the four advanced practice roles for your next degree? I’ll give you the details about what a CNS is, how they practice, and the benefits of having a CNS in your institution!

How to Cite this Blogpost in 7th edition APA:  Thompson, C. J. (2023, September 1). National clinical nurse specialist recognition week is September 1-7 [Blog post]. Nursing Education Expert. https://nursingeducationexpert.com/cns-week2023 

 

References and Sources (7th edition APA)*

*Hanging indent doesn’t work on my blog posts, so know that you need to use a hanging indent for your reference page citations when using APA format.

Klein, D. (2021, April18). Clinical nurse specialists: Leaders in improving patient outcomes [Blog post]. American Association of Critical Care Nurses. https://www.aacn.org/blog/clinical-nurse-specialists-leaders-in-improving-patient-outcomes?sc_camp=2459A1C37A064E53817C1C98D2594B0B&_zs=FV2UX&_zl=xLWj2

National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists. (2018). Statement on clinical nurse specialist practice and education: Third edition.

National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists. (2022). CNS week 2022! [Blog post]. National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists. https://nacns.org/event/cns-week-2022/

National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists. (2023a, April 4). United States and Canadian Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS) associations sign agreement to increase visibility of North America’s 93,000 CNSs [Press release]. https://nacns.org/2023/04/united-states-and-canadian-clinical-nurse-specialist-cns-associations-sign-agreement-to-increase-visibility-of-north-americas-93000-cnss/

National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists. (2023b). 2022 CNS census results: The opportunity of the next generation. https://nacns.org/resources/cns-census/

National CNS Competency Task Force (NACNS Task Force). (2010). Clinical nurse specialist core competencies: Executive summary 2006-2008. http://www.nacns.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/CNSCoreCompetenciesBroch.pdf 

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