Valid and reliable tests do not arise spontaneously from item writers. They are carefully planned to ensure that they are legally defensible and psychometrically sound. The blueprint, or test plan, identifies what content is included on the test and what majority of the questions are need to address for each type of nephrology patient clients and the activities performed by the NP.
The blueprint is a result of a practice analysis survey of NPs in nephrology that identifies the clients we serve and activities performed by NPs. This practice analysis is performed every five years to be sure the test reflects current practice. A national task force of CNN-NPs is brought together to plan the survey content. Following data collection, the survey results are reviewed and adjustments are made to the blueprint to ensure that the questions are properly distributed along the continuum of care based on current practice. Each question on the test can be linked directly to the tasks/activities in the practice analysis survey and all answers are supported, using the most recent edition of the ANNA Core Curriculum for Nephrology Nursing and other current references.
The group that oversees CNN-NP test development is the Advanced Practice Board of NNCC, which is made up of CNN-NPs with expertise in different areas of nephrology. There is also a CNN-NP Test Committee that writes the actual test questions. Item writers are CNN-NPs from a variety of geographic and practice settings. Members of both the Advanced Practice Board and the Item Writers are considered “content experts” concerning the knowledge and skills needed by NPs in nephrology. The Test Committee meets in person twice a year to review, evaluate, and write test questions to be certain that the test content is accurate.