NNCC Accreditation

The practice track is a process that allows physicians who initiated the subspecialty prior to the availability of accredited training programs to qualify for the examination by meeting a defined set of criteria. To apply via this pathway, applicants must fulfill the requirements of the pathway on or before the last date of the current application cycle.

The applicant must submit the following documentation for one of the three following areas in Neonatal Neurocritical Care. Applicants must use template letters provided by the UCNS where applicable.

a. Satisfactory completion of 12 months of formal training (non-accredited in Neonatal Neurocritical Care that has taken place after the completion of formal residency training in Neurology with special qualification in child neurology, Neurodevelopmental Disabilities, or Pediatrics with certification in Neonatal Perinatal Medicine. Training or exposure to Neonatal Neurocritical Care given to residents as part of their curriculum will not count toward the 12 months of training. The applicant must provide documentation from the appropriate program director of each institution where the training occurred or a copy of their fellowship completion certificate.

 OR

b. At least 100 hours of AMA PRA Category 1 CreditTM specifically related to Neonatal Neurocritical Care over the 60 months prior to application. Specification of programs attended and relevance to the field of Neonatal Neurocritical Care must be provided.

OR

 c. A letter from the applicant’s current department chair that states he/she has an active, full-time academic appointment in which his/her teaching responsibilities include instructing one or more of the following in Neonatal Neurocritical Care: medical students, residents, or fellows.

AND

Documentation of a 36-month* period of time in which the applicant has spent a minimum of 25% of his/her time in the practice of Neonatal Neurocritical Care.  Documentation of a 24 month period of time in which the applicant has spent a minimum of 50% of his/her time in the practice of Neonatal Neurocritical Care will also be accepted.

The practice must meet the following criteria:

i. Include evaluation in the context of diagnosis and management of neonates with acute neurological problems and/or longitudinal neurodevelopmental concerns. The applicant’s practice must include conditions in Sections II and III of the Neonatal Neurocritical Care Examination Content Outline.

ii. Have occurred in the United States, its territories, or in Canada.

iii. Have occurred in the 60-month interval immediately preceding application for certification but need not be continuous.

Academic Appointment at a UCNS-Accredited Training Program.

Faculty of a UCNS-accredited training program in Neonatal Neurocritical care must supply a letter, using the  Academic Appointment Verification template, from the applicant’s current department chair that states he/she has an active full-time academic appointment in which his-her teaching responsibilities include instructing Neonatal Neurocritical Care fellows.

Applicants of this pathway must provide practice pattern letters using the Subspecialty Practice Time Verification template. Practice time requirement will mirror the requirement stated in the practice track for each subspecialty. Required criteria for the letters is found within the templates.

Internationally Trained Faculty at UCNS-Accredited Training Programs

Applicant must have an active appointment as a program director or a faculty member of a UCNS-accredited training program or have evidence of a current offer of such an appointment. Such an offer must be written by the chairperson of the appropriate department of the academic institution and state: a) when the appointment began or will begin, b) that the appointment is contingent upon the applicant sitting for, and passing, the next available UCNS certification examination, and c) that retention or recruitment of the applicant is considered by the institution to be essential to the quality of the fellowship program.

Applicant must provide documentation of meeting the practice time requirements stated in the practice track pathway. The practice must:

• • Have occurred in the 60 months immediately preceding the applicant deadline but need not be continuous.

The application must contain a letter from the chairperson, using the Subspecialty Practice Time Verification template,  confirming the practice time requirement has been met. The letter must address the entire practice time period being submitted.