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The Advanced Practice Initiatives & Certification Outreach Team

Celebrating French American Heritage Month 
Embracing Bilingual Abilities & Connecting with a Diverse Patient Population: 
The Journey of
Farah Laurent, DNP, RN, NEA-BC, NPD-BC, CPXP, TCRN, CPEN, CEN  

In honor of French American Heritage Month, we celebrate the remarkable journey of Dr. Farah Laurent, who takes immense pride in being a first-generation immigrant and the first in her family to earn a doctoral degree.

Moving to Canada at the age of nine, she arrived speaking only French. Her bilingual abilities and multicultural upbringing have enabled her to forge strong connections with a diverse patient population. While translation services were always used, Farah's ability to communicate in French provided an added layer of comfort to her patients and their families. 

This worldview mixed with a rich tapestry of experiences has molded Farah into a compassionate nurse, a genuine leader, and a fierce advocate.

From a young age, "Nurse Farah" demonstrated her caring nature by nursing her dolls back to health with band-aids. Watching the TV show "Trauma: Life in the E.R." cemented her desire to become an emergency nurse, feeling a profound connection to the fast-paced, life-saving environment. Farah worked in various emergency departments; however, she eventually made her dream a reality when she worked at Detroit Receiving, Michigan’s first level 1 trauma center where Trauma: Life in the E.R was filmed.

Farah's natural advocacy skills and her fearless approach to speaking up have always set her apart, driving her passion for nursing. Her early experiences and determination paved the way for her career in emergency care, education, leadership, and entrepreneurship.

Farah’s positive energy brings joy into every aspect of her personal and professional career. She truly believes that nurses make a tremendous impact every day and can change the world. Her mission is to empower nurses globally to pursue their nursing dreams with confidence!

After earning her master’s in nursing education from Norwich University and obtaining multiple board certifications in emergency medicine, Farah was determined to elevate her nursing career. Her ambition led her to transition into educational roles, achieving the position of Director of Education 

Farah is deeply committed to inspiring her peers, nursing students, and new graduates to recognize the importance of ongoing professional development. Throughout her time in nursing school, she noticed a significant lack of diversity within the faculty and leadership roles, which motivated her to change this narrative. Understanding the critical role of diversity and representation, Farah knew she had to lead by example to drive this change. She aimed to create a more inclusive and representative nursing environment, demonstrating through her actions the value of continuous growth and development.

Today, Farah wears many professional hats. She was recently appointed as the Associate Dean of Nursing and Health Sciences at Salem University and also serves as a Nurse Career Coach, Speaker, and Corporate Trainer, focusing on professional and leadership development, branding, and fostering healthy work environments to retain top talent. Farah has appeared on numerous podcasts, highlighted in various nursing press, and she was recently featured on the Jennifer Hudson Show to showcase her work in nursing. She acknowledges the importance of certifications in enhancing one’s professional brand and recently completed her DNP in organizational leadership from Monmouth University. 

Valuing mentorship, Farah sees these accomplishments as key to being a well-rounded and knowledgeable mentor.

Farah takes immense pride in being ANCC certified, as this organization embodies excellence in the nursing profession. She is dedicated to advancing the field of nursing and being recognized as a Subject Matter Expert is a significant honor. She is committed to leading by example, striving to uplift the profession, and attract more individuals to pursue careers in nursing.

Farah understands that certification enhances patient outcomes and high standard of care. The ANCC certification program is nationally acknowledged as the benchmark for a nurse's ability to provide competent care. By achieving ANCC certification, nurses join a distinguished group of over 300,000 certified nurses demonstrating specialized knowledge and ongoing competence.

Being certified has truly changed the trajectory of Farah’s career and she is hopeful that her story will inspire others to take action into investing into their own professional development for the betterment of the profession as a whole!

1. Define your organization’s success.
2. The nurse takes the test or completes renewal requirements.
3. Your organization increases its number of board-certified nurses, with no financial risk.

Success Pays^® is Here to Help You! 

 Rachael Frija, DNP, RN, NPD-BC, NEA-BC and her experience as an
advocate of the ANCC Success Pays program.  

Back in 1990, when Dr. Rachael Frija was in high school, her future sister-in-law was going through nursing school.  She recalls her future sister-in-law being so excited about everything she was learning and how many lives she was helping.  Rachael knew then what she wanted to do as well!  Being the first person in her family to go to college, Rachael knew she wanted a career where she too could make a positive impact on people's lives. 

Working in the specialty of Nursing Professional Development, she came to realize that after she completed her master's in nursing education, it would be most beneficial to obtain the Nursing Professional Development (NPD-BC^™) certification. Her goal was to be known for providing high quality NPD practice and being credentialed by ANCC. 

The combination of her degree and certification demonstrates that she is a thought-leader in her practice and possesses knowledge of what is expected within the specialty.  

When enrolled in the DNP in nurse executive organizational leadership program at the University of New Mexico, the Nurse Executive, Advanced (NEA-BC^®) certification was an expected requirement for the degree. She thought to herself, "If you are going to be a leader in your specialty, you need to carry the credentials to certify you can be trusted to carry out the scope and standards of expected competencies within that role.". To her, ANCC certification is more than just credentials; it is credibility to the nursing practice. Having the additional knowledge required to pass the exam helps to elevate one's practice to provide the highest quality of care.  It signals the dedication to conduct the functions of the specialty.  

Being dual certified, Rachael knows the value of certification. She was more than thrilled to join an organization that participated in the Success Pays program because it signals the company's values. In her current role as Corporate Director of Clinical Education, she consistently collaborates with NPD practitioners, CNOs, and other nurse leaders from 30 hospitals across six states spread out from Idaho to New Jersey. As a role model for the nursing staff, she encourages them to obtain their certifications in NPD-BC and NEA-BC. Working directly with the Marketing Department, they spread the word about the program to encourage nursing staff to obtain certification within their specialties. She firmly believes the more certified nurses the organization has, the better the quality of care. Rachael feels that if she can accomplish her mission of supporting more nurses to become certificated, she will have fulfilled her high school dream of making a positive impact on people's lives.  

Interested in Success Pays^®? 

Learn how this Program can Support Your Organization

Lourdes B. Careaga, MSN, RN, NE-BC
Certification Outreach Program Manager 
successpays@ana.org

nursingworld.org/certification/success-pays/

Meet Lourdes B. Careaga, MSN, RN, NE-BC, who manages our ANCC Success Pays^® program. She is here to help support your nurses with their professional journey through ANCC certification. 

Program FAQs:

• Launched in 2013
• Over 500 Success Pays Partners
• Monthly Townhalls, hosted by Lourdes to stay connected. 

Benefits:

• Nurses are given two (2) opportunities to pass.
• The organization only pays for the nurses who pass.
• Reduces anxiety and financial barriers for nurses.
• No minimum or maximum limit for number of certification renewals.

Structure:

• A signed agreement between the organization and ANCC to promote nursing excellence through certification among clinicians.

Qualifying Programs:

• Initial Certifications
• Certification Renewals
• Retired Certified Nurses Recognition Program

Share Your Story with Us! 

Connect With Us if you are Interested in Providing a Testimonial

Meet Katelyn Bern, MA, who manages customer engagement through social media and at ANCC tradeshows. Reach out to her if you would like to share your motivational story with us and what being #ANCCCertified means to you! 

Follow Us & Get Helpful Resources:

• ANCC Certification Facebook
• Meet the Team
• Stories of Inspiration from ANCC Certified Nurses - May Edition 
• Stories of Inspiration from ANCC Certified Nurses - June Edition 

Katelyn Bern, MA
Outreach Engagement Manager &
Tradeshow Liaison 
certificationoutreach@ana.org