An Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN) license is required for CRNA practice in WV. The first APRN licenses were issued in 2013.
*You can and should visit the WV RN Board website and use their License Verification Portal to check the status of your APRN License as well as check the expiration date that they have on file for your NBCRNA certification/recertification. If an expired date is showing for your Certification, then your APRN License is no longer valid. Your APRN License and Certification must both be current to practice as a CRNA in WV.
You must create a WV RN Nurse Portal account to apply for an APRN license or to maintain your existing license.
The application for initial licensure as an APRN is available by visiting the WV RN Nurse Portal. In addition to the application, you must have official verification of your certification by the NBCRNA sent directly to the WV RN Board office. You must request an official transcript be sent directly from your nurse anesthesia education program to the WV RN Board office which indicates the degree conferred and date of graduation. If your original nurse anesthesia education program is now closed, then you may contact the AANA to request that a certified copy of your transcript from the closed program be sent directly to the WV RN Board office. APRNs who desire prescriptive authority must also complete a Prescriptive Authority Application which will be made available to you in the Nurse Portal once an APRN license has been issued.
APRN Renewals
All WV APRNs will need to renew their APRN license every odd numbered year by June 30. Your APRN License must be renewed before July 1st to continue practicing as a CRNA. Please remember that to keep your WV APRN license in good standing and to renew your APRN license, your NBCRNA Certification/Recertification must be current with official verification on file with the WV RN Board at all times. Please understand that your APRN License will become inactive regardless of the expiration date on you APRN License if at any time your NBCRNA certification/recertification expires OR if the WV RN Board does not have current verification of your certification/recertification on file. If you fail to submit current information regarding your recertification beyond the expiration date on file with the WV RN Board, then your APRN license will lapse, you may be fined and disciplined, and you will be required to submit a reinstatement application which may take several days, even weeks to process. Also, before you can renew your APRN license. you must complete of 24 credit hours of continuing education (CE) targeted at APRNs.
Attention New Graduates: According to the WV RN Board, initial applications generally take approximately two weeks to process after an application is complete. *Please note that the WV RN Board will require that you renew your APRN license AND complete 24 credit hours of CE required of APRNs regardless of when you were initially licensed as a WV APRN. For example, if you are initially licensed in May of an odd year, then you must complete the CE and complete your APRN renewal before July 1st of the same year.
Important Information Concerning Titles and Abbreviations for APRNs
According to our WV RN Board and in accordance with our APRN law/rules, each Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN) shall use the designation APRN and designated role title as a minimum for purposes of identification and documentation. When providing nursing care, the APRN shall wear clear identification and indicates his/her APRN designation. It might seem redundant to use both APRN in addition to our certification (CRNA). An expert from the National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN) spoke to this issue. The rationale given was the NCSBN wants to be able to track the APRN credential on the national level. As the Consensus model moves forward it will become even more important to clearly designate who has the APRN credential. For instance, we have been hearing that CMS is going to soon require the APRN designation for reimbursement. The WV RN Board and WV nursing leaders have soared to the front of the line as far as Consensus model and APRN work is concerned. As you just read about the tentative CMS requirement, we are already in compliance with this, and we can rest knowing that fact.
Therefore, we need to be using the abbreviations APRN and CRNA each time we document our name. For example, John Doe, APRN, CRNA. In addition, your facility should update their employee roster and your ID badge to include your new title in this format.
Also, several members have asked about the correct order when writing your credentials. According to the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), the preferred order when listing your credentials is to write your highest degree earned, licensure, and then national certification. For example, Jane Doe, MS, APRN, CRNA. Our current law does not require that you include your degree when documenting. However, it is appropriate if you wish to do so.
