Commonly asked questions

Do I have to use the extended CV template provided by FEN? If you wish to submit your extended CV in your own word document format this is perfectly acceptable. The online option was developed for ease of use and submission and can be used purely as a template that can be altered.

My CV looks repetitive how do I prevent this? The practice descriptors are designed to examine a whole range of emergency nursing activities and the statements you provide will need to address each one. However, members have found themselves repeating information under each heading, particularly in the first three or four statements. The FEN Reviewers are required to look at the whole of your submitted CV and assess the evidence; this means each section of the CV may apply to more than one practice descriptor to avoid repetition.

FEN Reviewers Guidelines

An invaluable resource to use whilst putting together your supporting statements is the FEN Reviewers Guidelines. For each level of membership the evidence required under the individual practice descriptor has been detailed. Reviewers use these guidance notes to establish whether a CV holds the evidence required for accreditation.  By looking at the practice descriptor then attempting to put your own evidence into the statements you will quickly begin to develop the information for your CV.

Guidance for Managers, Lecturers, Researchers and Practice Developers

There are many diverse roles within emergency care and for those who no longer have a clinically hands-on role the interpretation of the Practice Descriptors needs a slightly different approach. FEN does not wish to exclude the Managers, Lecturers, Researchers and Practice Developers amongst us so try and collate your evidence using this simple sub-text at the start of your Extended CV;

“In my present role I do not participate in direct patient care. My responsibilities are centered around, (insert your practice domain i.e. service delivery, practice development, research or strategic development).The evidence in this CV has been compiled to demonstrate how I impact on patients, staff and the environment of the emergency department to positively affect the quality of patient care”.

Peer Review Statement

Once the Extended CV is complete and you have provided written statements for each of the descriptors you are then required to obtain a verification statement. The process of peer review is central to FEN and has been adopted as the verification element of the Extended CV. You should choose a colleague, who has the seniority and ability, to review your CV and state that they agree this represents a true picture of your abilities and attributes. There are guidelines available to assist the verifier in compiling this statement.

A commonly asked question:
How much evidence do I need to supply with my CV? The short answer to this question is likely to be very little and in many cases none, this depends on who is the most appropriate person to complete your Peer Statement. If the statement is written by a colleague who knows your practice well and works alongside you regularly, they are likely to read your CV and recognise that what you have written matches the level of practice they observe. It may be you choose your manager to write the statement and include some information they have not known before, in these instances you should provide them with additional evidence, for example a short case study, teaching package or reflective piece, which they can use to verify your statement. No supporting evidence, other than your Extended CV, needs to be sent to FEN for accreditation.