Welcome!

This contact hour must be redeemed no later than September 30, 2016:

1. Go to www.PROLibraries.com/acrp
2. Log in with your ACRP user name (e-mail address) & password
3. Click on ‘ACRP 2015 Global Conference & Exhibition’
4. Click on ‘Browse Sessions’
5. Identify which session you wish to view
6. Click ‘Purchase’ and then click ‘View Cart’
7. Enter the Promotional Coupon: JULY2016 and click ‘Apply’ and then ‘Checkout’
8. Click ‘My Library’ on left hand side and select ‘ACRP 2015 Global Conference & Exhibition’
9. View the session and complete the ‘Session Evaluation’ to have the hour automatically added to your ACRP record

My "rapid-fire" response is "personal, professional, pride, passion and tenacity." So let me dissect this a bit. It is a very personal decision to become certified and to maintain one’s certification. Initially I pursued ACRP certification as a request from my employer. As soon as I sat for and passed the exam it became very personal to me. It was important to me, my career and my chosen profession.

Being personal led to pride. I was, and still am, very proud that I took on the challenge of passing the exam and therefore the right to display my ACRP Certified designation. I studied, comprehended and then applied my knowledge and experience to achieve this milestone in my career. I was an ACRP Certified Clinical Research Coordinator. I am proud to use my ACRP CCRC designation as much today as I did all those years ago.

You could say that I am passionate about our profession, what we do every day, and why we do what we do. As ACRP certified individuals we are dedicated to all regulatory, ethical, and scientific aspects of conducting safe clinical trials for new drugs and medical devices. In addition to providing outstanding care to the individuals who volunteer to participate in our investigational trials, we do this work to bring new treatment options to patients throughout the world. This in itself is reason to become ACRP certified and proudly display your certified designation.

By becoming an ACRP certified individual I am showing those I work with each day that I am a professional. It is recognition that I have met the professional eligibility requirements and have demonstrated my job related knowledge and skills.

Finally, tenacity. Yes, tenacity. It takes work to maintain my ACRP certification, as it should. It is a responsibility that I willingly take on so that I may continue to proudly display my CCRC designation. Each of us pursues ACRP certification within our discipline for different reasons. Ask yourself the question, "Why did I choose to be ACRP certified or to maintain my certification?" I am sure that "pride, professionalism, passion and tenacity" will be part of your personal decision as well.

I have a passion for certification programs because of the tremendous dedication and commitment volunteers have to ensure the exams are valid, reliable, and legally defensible. It is rewarding to be part of the process that goes into exam development and to see the end result with a creditable exam for the industry. It is very satisfying to work with an organization that recognizes the value of a certification program.

It’s an exciting time to be a part of ACRP and the Academy as we look to the future of our certification programs and products. The Academy Board held a strategic planning session in June to discuss expanding certification offerings to meet the needs of the clinical research professional. I invite you to share your thoughts on what products you would like to see developed. You can do that by e-mailing me at htrusty@acrpnet.org. Stay tuned….

In closing, I echo Susan’s question to ask yourself why you chose to become ACRP certified and maintain your certification. I would also recommend you share with colleagues who are not certified your reasons why you support this program and encourage them to take the Certified Clinical Research Associate (CCRA^®), the Certified Clinical Research Coordinator (CCRC^®), or the Certified Principal Investigator (CPI^®) exam next month. The deadline for applications is August 15, 2016. I look forward to meeting you and hope to hear from you soon.

Starting in 2017, ACRP Certification programs will be aligned with the Clinical Trial Competency Framework, developed by the Joint Task Force for Clinical Trial Competency (JTF). The framework supports a growing movement toward defining professional competency in clinical research by using a universal set of standards. In addition to the 1,500 hour work substitution for becoming dual certified, the following has been updated for 2017:

• Exam Content
• Eligibility Requirements
• Number of work experience hours/years required based on education

Please be sure to submit your application by November 15 to avoid the $75 late fee.

Are you dual certified? Download the printable application and email to Certification@acrpnet.org or fax to 703.254.8101 for manual processing.

Have you attended a training activity outside of ACRP and would like to receive credit? Send us a copy of the timed agenda marking the sessions you attended so that we can calculate the contact hours for you. Did you know that we accept CITI training as research points? ACRP also accepts in-house training as Continuing Education (CE).

In addition to Continuing Education activities, we also accept several Continuing Involvement activities. Investigator Meetings, Site Initiation Visits and 1572s are just a few examples that provide points towards your maintenance. Learn More about CE and CI activities

Also to note, ACRP accepts activities that are at minimum 45 minutes in length (0.75) – any activities that are less than that cannot be submitted. If you have any questions regarding maintenance, please email Certification@acrpnet.org

Don’t forget to claim your FREE badge, if you haven’t already done so. Refer to the email sent to you from ProExam Vault (vault@proexam.org) and click the "Claim Badge" button. Simply create a login to ProExam and then claim your badge. Every two years, when you maintain your certification, ACRP and "The Vault" will automatically update your certification’s expiration date, so no additional work is needed on your end. When you claim your badge, click the question mark to get the quick steps to start sharing to social media and your email signature.

Can’t find the original email? Ask Certification@acrpnet.org to have it resent.