# What a Washington certification is — and what it is not

> Washington State holds 145,796 active health care credentials of the form «Certification». What that word means, which professions carry it, and how it differs from the other forms.

## Certification

**145,796** of Washington’s 553,932 active health care credentials take this form — 26.3%, across 35 professions.

### The word is not decoration

A **certification** is
a credential the state grants against a defined standard. It is what Washington uses where the work is real and regulated but typically carried out under someone else’s direction rather than independently.

Washington is unusual in saying « credential » where
most states say « license », and it does so for a
reason: it issues 7 different forms, and they are not
interchangeable. The clearest case in the whole register is nursing
assistance, which exists as a *certification*
(59,078 active) and as
a *registration*
(25,386 active) at the
same time. Same job title in ordinary speech; different credential, different
route in.

We describe what the register shows. What each form permits in
practice is set out in Washington’s own rules for each profession, and
that is where a question about scope of practice belongs.

### The professions that carry a certification

| Profession | Active credentials | Share |
|---|---|---|
| [Nursing Assistant Certification](/profession/nursing-assistant-certification.md) | 59,078 | 40.5% |
| [Medical Assistant Certification](/profession/medical-assistant-certification.md) | 20,392 | 14.0% |
| [Emergency Medical Technician Certification](/profession/emergency-medical-technician-certification.md) | 14,905 | 10.2% |
| [Medical Assistant Phlebotomist Certification](/profession/medical-assistant-phlebotomist-certification.md) | 14,526 | 10.0% |
| [Pharmacy Technician Certification](/profession/pharmacy-technician-certification.md) | 10,038 | 6.9% |
| [Radiologic Technologist Certification](/profession/radiologic-technologist-certification.md) | 8,453 | 5.8% |
| [Dietitian Certification](/profession/dietitian-certification.md) | 4,242 | 2.9% |
| [Paramedic Certification](/profession/paramedic-certification.md) | 3,426 | 2.3% |
| [Substance Use Disorder Professional Certification](/profession/substance-use-disorder-professional-certification.md) | 3,247 | 2.2% |
| [Medical Assistant Hemodialysis Technician Certification](/profession/medical-assistant-hemodialysis-technician-certification.md) | 1,445 | 1.0% |
| [Medical Test Site Certificate of Waiver License](/profession/medical-test-site-certificate-of-waiver-license.md) | 1,325 | 0.9% |
| [Birth Doula Certification](/profession/birth-doula-certification.md) | 759 | 0.5% |
| [Medical Cannabis Consultant Certification](/profession/medical-cannabis-consultant-certification.md) | 730 | 0.5% |
| [Cardiovascular Invasive Specialist Certification](/profession/cardiovascular-invasive-specialist-certification.md) | 406 | 0.3% |
| [Nutritionist Certification](/profession/nutritionist-certification.md) | 397 | 0.3% |
| [Advanced Emergency Medical Technician Certification](/profession/advanced-emergency-medical-technician-certification.md) | 374 | 0.3% |
| [Speech Language Pathology Assistant Certification](/profession/speech-language-pathology-assistant-certification.md) | 350 | 0.2% |
| [Dental Anesthesia Assistant Certification](/profession/dental-anesthesia-assistant-certification.md) | 301 | 0.2% |
| [Counselor Certified Certification](/profession/counselor-certified-certification.md) | 252 | 0.2% |
| [Reflexologist Certification](/profession/reflexologist-certification.md) | 195 | 0.1% |
| [Counselor Agency Affiliated Certification](/profession/counselor-agency-affiliated-certification.md) | 191 | 0.1% |
| [Emergency Medical Responder Certification](/profession/emergency-medical-responder-certification.md) | 186 | 0.1% |
| Medical Assistant Interim Certification | 149 | 0.1% |
| Animal Massage Certification for Large Animals | 118 | 0.1% |
| Sex Offender Treatment Provider Certification | 87 | 0.1% |
| Animal Massage Certification for Small Animals | 57 | 0.0% |
| Medical Assistant Emergency Services Certification | 54 | 0.0% |
| Poison Information Specialist Certification | 34 | 0.0% |
| Substance Use Disorder Professional Probationary Certification | 21 | 0.0% |
| Colon Hydrotherapist Certification | 18 | 0.0% |
| Sex Offender Treatment Provider Affiliate Certification | 16 | 0.0% |
| Radiologist Assistant Certification | 10 | 0.0% |
| Forensic Phlebotomist Certification | 8 | 0.0% |
| Behavioral Health Support Specialist Certification | 5 | 0.0% |
| Birth Doula Certification Training Program | 1 | 0.0% |

**265** of the 145,796 active credentials of this form
carry a disciplinary flag in the Department’s file —
0.2% — and **231** carry one marked
pending.

This site publishes that count and no more: never who. The
reason is not discretion, it is accuracy — the published file carries a
yes/no flag and **nothing else**: no reason, no date, no case
number. Naming someone on the strength of it would publish a suspicion rather
than a fact. Every credential counted here is **active**.
[Why the line is drawn there](/discipline.md).

### Do not let the date pass

145,796 credentials take the form of a certification. Washington renews most of them on the holder’s birthday, every year or every two years, and continuing-education hours have to be done before that date — not after. Leave your details and we will tell you when yours is close, and pass your request for continuing-education hours to providers who teach for this credential.

We take no commission and we vouch for no training provider. We have no arrangement with any provider today — we are collecting these requests in order to go and find them. [What we do with this](/privacy.md).

### The other forms Washington issues

- [License](/credential/license.md) 304,441
- [Registration](/credential/registration.md) 74,135
- [Permit](/credential/permit.md) 883
- [Endorsement](/credential/endorsement.md) 197
- [Trainee](/credential/trainee.md) 1,833
- [Other credential](/credential/other-credential.md) 26,630

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Página: https://credential-wa.pages.dev/credential/certification/
Fonte: Health Care Provider Credential Data — Washington State Department of Health
Recolha: 2026-08-20