The Certified Wound Ostomy Continence Nurse (CWOCN®) exam is developed and maintained by the Wound, Ostomy, and Continence Certification Board (WOCNCB). The CWOCN certification is for general practice nurses interested in moving to the specialized wound and ostomy continence care field.
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Exam Eligibility
There are two pathways to eligibility for the CWOCN exam. Both methods require you to hold a current Registered Nurse (RN) license and a bachelor’s degree in any field.
Traditional Pathway
For this pathway, you need to be a graduate of an accredited Wound, Ostomy, and Continence (WOC) Nursing Education program completed within the past five years from the date of exam application. The WOC program must be accredited by the WOCN® Society at graduation and include 40 hours of didactic instruction, 40 hours of clinical patient care, and 20 hours distributed between specialty areas.
Experiential Pathway
This pathway focuses on your experience in the specialty after obtaining your bachelor’s degree while practicing as an RN. This pathway requires 100 Continuing Education (CE)/Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits (50 credits per specialty) or an equivalent in college courses completed over the five years before the date of your application. Your CE/CME credits must apply directly to the CWON specialty. Additionally, you must have 3,000 patient clinical hours (1,500 clinical hours per specialty) within the previous five years, with 375 clinical hours obtained within the past year. The required clinical and education hours must be directly related to the specialties.
About the CWOCN Credential
To obtain the CWOCN credential, you must pass three exams: the Certified Wound Care Nurse (CWCN) exam, the Certified Ostomy Care Nurse (COCN) exam, and the Certified Continence Care Nurse (CCCN) exam.
Each exam evaluates your specialized competence and professionalism in providing wound and ostomy care, including assessment, intervention, and education in all settings across the healthcare spectrum.
CWOCN Exam Outline
Each exam contains 120 multiple-choice questions, ten of which do not count toward your final score, and you will be given two hours to complete each exam.
There are three types of questions throughout each exam:
- Recall (25%)
Recall or recognize specific information - Application (61%)
Comprehend, relate, or apply knowledge to new or changing situations - Analysis (14%)
Analyze and synthesize information, determine solutions, or evaluate the usefulness of a solution
CWCN Exam
The Certified Wound Care Nurse exam contains five domains, divided into tasks that evaluate your knowledge and skills.
- Assessing comprehensive factors affecting wounds
- Determining the patient’s health and risk status by obtaining health history
- Performing focused assessments to determine skin status and wound etiology
Domain II: Intervention (18 scored questions)
- Implementing prevention measures to promote skin health and injury prevention
- Recommending and providing interventions to promote wound management
Domain III: Treatment (32 scored questions)
- Recommending and/or performing wound bed preparation
- Recommending and/or performing debridement to promote wound healing
- Topical therapies that promote wound healing
- Advanced therapies that promote wound healing
Domain IV: Care Planning (13 scored questions)
- Establishing skin and wound management goals to develop a care plan
- Promoting skin and wound management by evaluating the care plan
Domain V: Education and Referral (21 scored questions)
- Educating patients and caregivers by using the individualized care plan
- Educating other healthcare professionals and preventing complications
- Multidisciplinary care collaboration and referrals
COCN Exam
The Certified Ostomy Care Nurse exam contains five domains, divided into tasks that evaluate your knowledge and skills.
- Assessing health-related quality of life of patients
- Determining the patient’s health and risk status by obtaining health history
- Performing focused assessments to determine status of ostomies, continent diversions, fistulae, or percutaneous tubes/drains
Domain II: Intervention (24 scored questions)
- Recommending and providing interventions to promote optimal management of fistulae
- Recommending and providing interventions to promote optimal management of percutaneous tubes/drains
- Recommending and providing interventions to promote optimal management of fecal and urinary diversions
Domain III: Treatment (23 scored questions)
- Management of fecal and urinary diversions
- Management of fistulae
- Management of percutaneous tubes/drains
Domain IV: Care Planning (14 scored questions)
- Establishing management goals to develop a care plan
- Promoting optimal ostomy, continent diversion, fistula, or percutaneous tube/drain management by evaluating the care plan
Domain V: Education and Referral (22 scored questions)
- Educating patients and caregivers on care principles and techniques
- Educating other healthcare professionals and preventing complications
- Multidisciplinary care collaboration and referrals
CCCN Exam
The Certified Continence Care Nurse exam contains five domains, divided into tasks that evaluate your knowledge and skills.
- Determining the patient’s health and risk status by obtaining health history
- Assessing health-related quality of life of patients with continence issues
- Performing focused assessments to determine continence status
Domain II: Intervention (19 questions)
- Recommend and provide interventions for the optimal management of voiding dysfunction and urinary incontinence
- Recommend and provide interventions for the optimal management of bowel dysfunction and decal incontinence
Domain III: Treatment (23 questions)
- Managing voiding dysfunction and urinary incontinence
- Managing bowel dysfunction and fecal incontinence
Domain IV: Care Planning (15 questions)
- Establishing management of voiding and bowel dysfunction to develop a care plan
- Promoting continence and prevention of complications by evaluating the care plan
Domain V: Education and Referral (30 questions)
- Educating patients and caregivers on care principles and techniques
- Educating other health care professionals on care principles and techniques to promote optimal management and prevent complications
- Multidisciplinary care collaboration and referrals
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Registration
Registration for the combined CWOCN exam is available only online. You must complete the application, upload the required documents, and pay the $610 registration fee. The fee is payable online via credit card or mail with a personal check or money order.
Scheduling the Exams
When your registration is approved, Scantron emails your notification of eligibility to sit for the examinations. You can take all three exams in one appointment, or break them up into multiple appointments. From your approval date, you have 12 months to complete the exams. Separate testing appointments incur a one-time $75 surcharge. The surcharge fee is paid with the exam registration fees.
Test Day
There are two exam delivery methods: at a Scantron testing center and by a remote proctor.
Scantron Testing Facility
Scantron testing centers are located nationwide and internationally. Testing sessions are filled on a first-come, first-served basis and are based on test center availability. Tests are generally offered Monday through Friday with two sessions per day. There is an additional fee of $150 for examinations scheduled outside of the US or Canada.
Remote Proctored Exam
Live remote proctoring allows you to take the exams from the comfort of your home or office. Requirements for remote testing include a desktop or laptop computer (tablets and mobile devices are not eligible for remote proctoring), a webcam, and a microphone. Remote proctored exams are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
How the Exams are Scored
The results of each exam are provided to you immediately after the exam. You can also view your results through the online credentialing system found on the Scantron website.
WOCNCB uses a scaled scoring method to determine the minimum passing point. Each correct answer is worth a raw point. The raw points are totaled, and a scaled score is determined.
The minimum scaled score you need to pass the exam is 500.
Retaking the Exams
If you need to retake the exams, WOCNCB offers a one-time discount of $100 (after the first retake, full fees apply). You can take the exam up to three times with a 30-day waiting period between attempts without having to reapply. However, additional attempts after the third require a new application.
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FAQs
Q
How do I obtain a CWOCN certification?
A
To be certified as a Certified Wound Ostomy Continence Nurse (CWOCN), you must pass the Certified Wound Care Nurse (CWCN) exam, the Certified Ostomy Care Nurse (COCN) exam, and the Certified Continence Care Nurse (CCCN) exam..
Q
How many questions are on each exam?
A
There are 120 questions on each certification exam.
Q
How long are the exams?
A
Each exam is timed at two hours.
Q
What is a passing score for the CWOCN certification?
A
To pass the exam, you must achieve a minimum scaled score of 500.
Q
How much does a CWOCN certification cost?
A
Because you are taking three exams to obtain your CWOCN certification, the fee is $610.
CWCN®, COCN®, CCCN®, CWON®, and CWOCN® are registered trademarks of the Wound Ostomy Continence Nursing Certification Board. Mometrix Test Preparation is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Wound Ostomy Continence Nursing Certification Board.
