About

About

Our Mission Statement

It is the mission of the Neonatal Therapy Certification Board (NTCB) to recognize and advance inter-professional neonatal therapy practice through evidence-based certification standards including validation of clinical experience and knowledge essential for effective delivery of neonatal therapy. NTCB offers the Certified Neonatal Therapist™ CNTcertification program. This voluntary certification in neonatal therapy identifies those therapists who have demonstrated the expertise to work independently in the NICU. The NTCB is a non-profit association.

History Of The NTCB

A 14-member multidisciplinary board was appointed in 2014 for the purposes of developing neonatal therapy certification. Due to criteria established by the Institute for Credentialing Excellence (I.C.E.) and the need for independent governance, the NTCB maintains a structure and processes which are completely independent of other organizations. In 2019, the NTCB was designated as a 501c6 non-profit organization.

April 15, 2014
Neonatal Therapists National Certified Board (NTNCB) members appointed
April 15, 2014
Sept 15, 2015
NTNCB conducted a practice analysis
Sept 15, 2015
Dec 12, 2015
NTNCB began exam construction
Dec 12, 2015
April 16, 2016
www.NTNCB.com launched
April 16, 2016
April 26, 2016
Formal announcement about neonatal therapy certification to APTA, AOTA, ASHA
April 26, 2016
June 10, 2016
First pilot of certification exam completed; exam psychometrics
June 10, 2016
Sept 1, 2016
Second pilot of certification exam completed; exam psychometrics
Sept 1, 2016
Nov 1, 2016
Applications for neonatal therapy certification opened
Nov 1, 2016
March 1, 2017
Exam administration began
March 1, 2017
March 31, 2017
Exam psychometrics analyzed
March 31, 2017
April 8, 2017
First Certified Neonatal Therapistsannounced
April 8, 2017
September 22, 2017
100 Certified Neonatal Therapists
September 22, 2017
October 1, 2017
Started new test construction
October 1, 2017
November 1, 2017
Exam psychometrics re-analyzed.150 Certified Neonatal Therapists
November 1, 2017
December 1, 2017
Started immediate release of test scores at the testing centers
December 1, 2017
March 15, 2018
Added two new NTNCB members
March 15, 2018
March 31, 2018
Exam psychometrics re-analyzed
March 31, 2018
July 10, 2018
NTNCB became a member of the Institute for Credentialing Excellence (ICE)
July 10, 2018
September 26, 2018
200 Certified Neonatal Therapists™
September 26, 2018
December 14, 2018
NTNCB implemented a bi-annual application process
December 14, 2018
June 1, 2019
300 Certified Neonatal Therapists
June 1, 2019
October 15, 2019
Practice analysis of 468 neonatal therapists from 2016 published Pineda R, Degaetano S, Kindra M, Hand T, Craig J, Fernandez-Fernandez A, Collette D. (2019). Neonatal therapy: A survey of current practice. Journal of Pediatric Rehabilitation Medicine; 12 (3) 285-294.
October 15, 2019
November 8, 2019
CNT member benefit of current evidence implemented
November 8, 2019
January 22, 2020
400 Certified Neonatal Therapists™
January 22, 2020
January 31, 2020
New practice analysis completed (over 1700 neonatal therapists from over 1100 NICUs)
January 31, 2020
March 15, 2020
New application system with Certemy launched
March 15, 2020
June 1, 2020
Launched new certification exam using Pearson VUE testing centers
June 1, 2020
October 16, 2020
500 CNTs
October 16, 2020
October 29, 2020
CNT™-Retired status launched
October 29, 2020
January 1, 2021
Public Members join the NTNCB
January 1, 2021
February 26, 2021
Announced name change to the Neonatal Therapy Certification Board (NTCB) to be inclusive of our international community
February 26, 2021
May 3, 2021
600 CNTs
May 3, 2021
May 12, 2022
700+ CNTs
May 12, 2022
November 22, 2022
800 CNTs
November 22, 2022
September 18, 2023
900+ CNTs
September 18, 2023
April 12, 2024
1000 CNTs
April 12, 2024

Meet the Board

In 2014, the National Association of Neonatal Therapists (NANT) appointed a multidisciplinary board of neonatal therapists for the purposes of developing neonatal therapy certification. Due to criteria established by the Institute for Credentialing Excellence (I.C.E.) and the need for independent governance, the NTCB maintains a structure and processes which are completely separate from NANT.

Disclaimer

Neonatal therapy certification™ is a specialty certification that demonstrates that an occupational therapist, physical therapist, or speech-language pathologist has met the minimum standard of education, experience and knowledge in the neonatal intensive care setting.

Certification by the NTCB does not in itself confer authority to practice therapy beyond the authority granted by a state or country that issues credentialing/permissions to practice.

The Certified Neonatal Therapist designation must not be interpreted to mean that the NTCB supersedes any state or country with regard to licensing/credentialing requirements or permission to treat patients. Therapists who have successfully become certified by the NTCB must be aware of any and all stipulations within their practice and must not practice outside their legal limits. The NTCB will not be held accountable for the provision of unsafe and/or unprofessional practice. It is the sole responsibility of the therapist and his/her licensing board, credentialing body and/or employer to provide oversight for breaches in practice. The CNT designation relies on maintaining licensure/credentialing or permission to practice as a therapist, and loss of such results in loss of the CNT designation. It is the responsibility of the applicant to notify the NTCB when loss of licensure/credentialing or permission to practice occurs.