Dialysis Technician Certification, Certification for Dialysis Technician
According to the National Kidney Foundation, 26 million people in the United States are living with chronic kidney disease today. Dialysis technician certification will be an in-demand career for years to come.
For those folks, dialysis can be a life-saving treatment. Dialysis is the process by which waste and excess water is removed from the blood. It is necessary for patients suffering from loss of kidney function or who are in renal failure to receive this treatment. A dialysis machine is used for the process. In layman’s terms, a dialysis machine extracts the blood from a patient’s body, “cleans it,” and then returns the filtered product to the patient. It is an option for people who do not need or who do not qualify for a kidney transplant. Without this device and the procedure it performs, those suffering from kidney-related issues would live shorter lives.
The entire procedure requires the knowledge and ability of a dialysis technician in order to be performed properly. Dialysis technicians receive special training on how to properly operate a dialysis machine, monitor patients while the machine is in use and record patient data.
Most dialysis technicians possess either a certificate from an accredited program, or have earned an Associate in Applied Science degree. No matter which level of education a technician has received, all must be certified in order to work in their field.
Effective since 2010, all dialysis technicians must pass a federally-mandated dialysis technician certification exam. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid are responsible for overseeing this process. The exam is administered through one of three organizations: the Nephrology Nursing Certification Commission, the National Nephrology Certification Organization or the Board of Nephrology Examiners.
In order to be eligible to sit for the certification exam, candidates must have obtained a minimum of six months of experience in nephrology technology. Nephrology is a subset of internal medicine and pediatrics which studies the function of, and diseases which affect, the kidneys. Nephrologists learn how to diagnose and treat kidney disease, which includes dialysis.
The certification exam consists of four main practice areas: clinical, technical, environmental and role. Knowledge of clinical practice consists of 50 percent of the exam total. Technical is 23 percent, environmental is 15 percent and the remaining 12 percent is role. There are 150 questions on the exam. Candidates sitting for the exam have three hours to complete the exam.
There are many resources available to students who are studying for the certification exam. The Nephrology Nursing Certification Commission offers candidates the option of taking a practice exam on their website for fee of $30. The practice exam contains 50 questions and allows test-takers a total of an hour and a half to complete it. Upon completion of the exam, the correct answers for each question – along with an explanation for the answers – are displayed. The Board of Nursing in several states also provides sample test questions for students preparing for the exam. Most of these tests are free to take, but only consist of 10-20 questions.
Once candidates have received certification, the process is not over. Certification expires after three years, and technicians who wish to renew it must have at least 3,000 hours of work experience and have completed 30 hours of continuing education in the field.
Article by Shari Berg, SmartSchoolFinder.com