WCC Certification: Overview and FAQ

If you’re passionate about providing exceptional wound care and want to advance your career, earning a Wound Care Certified (WCC) certification could be the perfect next step. Offered by the National Alliance of Wound Care and Ostomy, wound care certification affirms your skills in advanced skin and wound care and elevates your credibility as a clinician. Why might you want to pursue WCC and what does it take to do so? Let’s dive into this exciting certification.

What Is Wound Care Certification?

The Wound Care Certified credential is for healthcare providers who specialize in wound management. This certification signifies that you have the knowledge and skills to assess, treat, and manage various types of wounds, including pressure ulcers, diabetic foot ulcers, and surgical wounds. WCC professionals are equipped to provide comprehensive wound care, develop personalized treatment plans, and collaborate with other healthcare providers to improve patient outcomes.

Unlike other wound care certifications, WCC isn’t only for nurses. If you have one of the licenses below, you can take the WCC exam and become certified:

• Registered nurse (RN)
• Licensed practical/vocational nurses (LPN/LVN)
• Nurse practitioner (NP)
• Physician assistant (PA)
• Physical therapist (PT)
• Physical therapist assistant (PTA)
• Occupational therapist (OT)
• Occupational therapist assistant (OTA)
• Medical doctor (MD)
• Doctor of osteopathy (DO)
• Doctor of podiatric medicine (DPM)
• Assistant physician (AP)

This credential opens up your ability to practice in specialized settings. Clinicians with WCC certification may work in clinical areas such as the ones below:

• Hospital wound care teams
• Outpatient wound clinics
• Long-term care facilities
• Home health care
• Rehabilitation centers
• Hospice and palliative care
• Burn units
• Military and veteran’s hospitals
• Public health agencies
• Research and academia

Benefits of a WCC Certificate

WCC is not a practice requirement, but it’s a sign of advanced skills and knowledge. Why pursue this credential? Check out some of the benefits of earning WCC:

• Recognition: WCC is a mark of excellence in wound care, enhancing your professional reputation and credibility among peers and employers.
• Advancement: Certified wound care professionals may have access to more leadership opportunities, specialty roles, and higher earning potential.
• Skills: The certification process deepens your understanding of wound management, equipping you with the skills to provide high-quality, evidence-based care to patients with complex wound conditions.
• Patient outcomes: WCC professionals promote wound healing and help prevent complications, leading to better health outcomes and quality of life.

How to Get WCC Certification: 4 Steps

Step 1: Meet Eligibility Requirements

To qualify for the certification exam, you’ll need to meet NAWCO’s eligibility requirements. These include the following:

• Current and unrestricted healthcare practice license
• Education requirement: Either graduate from an NAWCO-approved wound care program or have one of these current certifications:
  • CWCN (Certified Wound Care Nurse)
  • CWON (Certified Wound Ostomy Nurse)
  • CWOCN (Certified Wound Ostomy Continence Nurse)
  • CWS (Certified Wound Specialist)
• Experience requirement: Either have 120 hours of clinical training with an approved preceptor or 2 full-time years (or 4 part-time years) in the wound care profession.

Not sure if you qualify? Use NAWCO’s eligibility tracker to evaluate your readiness. If you’re completing the coursework requirement, NAWCO doesn’t offer courses but they do have criteria for wound care courses that they’ll accept. WCC certificate programs must:

• Contain content relevant to WCC’s certification exam.
• Be delivered online or in person.
• Provide at least 20 hours of coursework.

Step 2: Apply

Once you meet the eligibility requirements, you can apply for WCC certification online. In the process of applying, you’ll be required to agree to NAWCO’s Code of Ethics and provide supporting documents to show you are eligible.

You’ll also submit a fee when you apply. The WCC certification cost list is as follows:

• Nonrefundable processing fee: $30
• Initial certification: $350
• Reexamination: $350

Step 3: Pass the Certification Exam

Once you’re approved, you’ll receive an email from Prometric prompting you to schedule your exam. The WCC test assesses your knowledge and skills in wound management. You’ll have two hours to complete all 110 questions, but 10 are unscored. Here are the content areas on the exam:

• Assessment
• Treatment
• Reevaluation
• Education
• Administration
• Legal
• Risk and prevention

To prepare, make a study guide using NAWCO’s approved resources list, and review the exam outline in detail. Check back with your online account to view results. Once you’ve passed, you and potential employers will be able to find your name within NAWCO’s WCC certification verification portal.

Step 4: Maintain Your Credential

After obtaining your WCC credential, you’ll need to maintain it through recertification every five years. You’ll need to meet these eligibility requirements to recertify:

• Active, unrestricted medical or nursing license
• Current, active WCC credential
• Signed NAWCO Code of Ethics agreement
• Complete one of the following within the recertification period:
  • Graduate from a skin and wound management course.
  • Pass the WCC certification exam.
  • Complete 60 contact hours in skin and wound care.
  • Become a NAWCO-approved preceptor.

Additionally, you’ll need to pay a recertification fee of $380 to renew. Try not to let your credentials lapse, because if you do, you’ll be subject to additional fees:

• Lapsed credential reinstatement: $350
• Lapsed credential late fee: $300

WCC FAQs

WCC vs. CWCN

CWCN stands for Certified Wound Care Nurse, and unlike WCC, only nurses can acquire it. CWCN credentials are offered by the Wound, Ostomy, and Continence Nursing Certification Board (WOCNCB). You can expect CWCN to be more closely tailored to nursing practice, while WCC may incorporate a more interdisciplinary approach. Both are valid for five years.

WCC vs. CWOCN

Certified Wound Ostomy Continence Nurse (CWOCN) is also targeted to nurses, and it may have broader content and skills implications for the clinicians who have it. CWOCN covers artificial openings in the body (stomas, colostomy, ileostomy, gastrostomy, and more), as well as continence care. Because of this, CWOCN may offer more opportunities in ostomy clinics and other specialized settings.

How hard is the WCC certification test?

About 72% of candidates pass the test on their first try. Take your time and study consistently to avoid having to re-test. You can take the exam four times.

Related Certifications

• Certified Wound Ostomy Continence Nurse (CWOCN)
• Certified Wound Care Nurse (CWCN)
• Certified Wound Specialist (CWS)
• Certified Wound Care Associate (CWCA)
• Certified Diabetes Care and Education Specialist (CDCES)
• Trauma Certified Registered Nurse (TCRN)
• Trauma Nursing Core Course (TNCC)
• Certified Hyperbaric Registered Nurse (CHRN)

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