Nursing student residency program: a model for a seamless transition from nursing student to RN

It takes a relatively long time for new nursing graduates to become oriented and comfortable with work routines on the nursing unit. To address the problem, the authors formed a partnership among three educational programs and three hospitals. This article describes a 900-hour residency program for senior baccalaureate nursing students to ease their transition into the role of beginning-level staff nurse in an acute-care setting. The benefits to the hospitals were decreased orientation time, less turnover in staff (50% at 2 years), and lower recruitment costs.     

A statewide consortium initiative to establish an undergraduate clinical internship program.

The amount of time and the type of experience needed by undergraduate students in the clinical setting to actually practice nursing has been the subject of many debates between nurses in academe and service. Rather than blaming each other for the culture shock and transition problems of neophyte nurses, members of the academic and practice community in Rhode Island decided to address the problem together. The development of the collaborative program described in this article grew out of a research study and was coordinated through the efforts of nurses from service and academe. The central outcome of this statewide consortium's project was to increase the students' level of nursing competencies. "Turf" issues that related to the colleges and the hospitals involved became secondary. Everyone involved believed that students from different collegiate programs working together presented exciting opportunities to share and learn from one another. In addition, other outcomes included increased recruitment and retention of these baccalaureate-prepared nurses in the hospitals, and greater ease in their orientation and transition. In addition, a cluster of three research studies were conducted by members of the consortium. This ongoing program, in which nurses in education and service are working together in a statewide consortium to break down the turf issues that separated them, is achieving outcomes that could not have been accomplished had it been undertaken independently. This article describes the process used to develop, implement, and evaluate such a program.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Preparing the nursing student for internship in a pre-registration nursing program: Developing a problem based approach with the use of high fidelity simulation equipment

AimThis paper aims to explore the development and evaluation results of a simulated skills package designed using a problem based learning approach with general nursing students.BackgroundInternationally, the use of high fidelity simulated learning environments has escalated. This has occurred as a result of growing concerns relating to patient safety, patient litigation, lack of clinical opportunities for student nurses to gain experience and integration of new teaching methods into nursing curricula. There are however both proponents and opponents to the value of simulation and high fidelity simulation within nursing education.MethodsThis study was conducted in an Irish school of nursing. A simulated learning support package was developed by nurse educators and piloted with 134 third year nursing students. This was evaluated using a questionnaire in which 87 students responded.FindingsStudents generally found the simulation sessions realistic and useful in developing clinical skills, knowledge and confidence for clinical practice. However student issues regarding support with preparation for the session were highlighted. Also, the need for a more formalised structure for debriefing following the simulation sessions were identified.ConclusionIt is hoped that this paper will provide nurse educators with some guidance to aid future development of innovative and interactive teaching and learning strategies.     

Academic and clinical immersion in an accelerated nursing program to foster learning in the adult student

Second-degree accelerated nursing programs provide an expedited pathway to enter the nursing profession. Most students in such programs are adult learners with high expectations for their own performance and equally high expectations for the curriculum of the chosen program. Clinical and academic immersions are curriculum strategies that are particularly suited to the adult learner in a second-degree accelerated program. This article discusses the development of an accelerated program, with a focus on the intended and unexpected challenges and outcomes associated with planning and implementing immersion learning for academic and clinical experiences. Content linkage as a teaching strategy is also described. The immersion year enhances collaboration and socialization among students, faculty, and staff nurses.     

A senior internship: facilitating the transition to nursing practice

Nursing students are not afforded the opportunity to take a full patient assignment before transitioning into practice. It then often takes students months to feel comfortable caring for more than 2 patients once in practice. To assist students with transition-into-practice issues, the authors discuss a senior internship where students work one-to-one with an expert nurse, becoming acclimated to taking a full patient assignment.     

Enhancing support for nursing students in the clinical setting

Quality clinical placement experiences are essential for effective student learning. Key factors that can influence this experience are students not feeling welcome in the clinical setting and limited opportunities for them to engage in learning. From a review of the literature and of personal experiences, this paper presents some guidelines that can be introduced at local level without requiring additional resources in order to improve students' experiences.     

Allied health graduate program - supporting the transition from student to professional in an interdisciplinary program

The transition from student to professional is challenging. Training programs provide discipline specific skills but do not adequately develop the interprofessional, team focused and work ready clinicians needed for the current workplace. In Australia, a formal graduate year is common in nursing; however, structured programs to support the student to professional transition are uncommon in allied health. This paper reports on the first year of an innovative program designed to address this gap. Fourteen new graduates at Northern Health in Melbourne, Australia from the disciplines of occupational therapy, physical education, physiotherapy, podiatry, social work and speech pathology participated in twelve, 2-hour sessions over a ten-month period during their first year of professional practice. These facilitated sessions aimed to foster reflective practice, peer support, to develop professional characteristics and provide an interdisciplinary forum for sharing experiences and learning. The paper outlines graduates and facilitators experience, together with the impacts for the health service.     

临床实习护生心理健康状况调查及干预对策

目的:调查临床实习护生心理健康状况及其相关因素,寻求有效的干预对策。方法:采用症状自评量表(SCL-90)及自行设计调查表对112名临床实习护生进行问卷调查。结果:护理专业女大学生SCL-90躯体化、人际关系敏感、抑郁、焦虑、恐怖、偏执、精神病性等7个因子分均明显高于全国青年常模,差异有统计学意义(P0.05或P0.001),而强迫症状、敌对等因子分与全国青年常模比较,差异无统计学意义(P0.05)。相对本科临床实习护生,专科实习护生SCL-90抑郁、焦虑、偏执等因子分更高(P0.05)。家庭经济条件差、非自已选择专业、不喜欢护理专业、对就业感到悲观、实习工作压力大、不喜欢向人倾诉、来自农村等是其心理健康的主要影响因素。结论:临床实习护生心理健康存在一定的问题,带教老师应及时开展形式多样的心理干预,提高护生的心理健康水平。     

The relationship of hardiness and social support to student appraisal of stress in an initial clinical nursing situation

The stressful nature of the clinical experience of nursing students was examined within the context of Lazarus' theory of cognitive appraisal of stress. The students' evaluation of their initial medical-surgical clinical experience as a threat or a challenge was determined along with the hypothesized mediating variables of hardiness and social support. The sample of 246 students from seven different colleges and universities in Pennsylvania completed a hardiness measure, the Norbeck Social Support Questionnaire (NSSQ), and a Clinical Stress Questionnaire (CSQ). Although the correlations were low, hardiness was found to be positively related to the evaluation of challenge and negatively related to the evaluation of threat. Social support was positively related to the evaluation of challenge only when using a work-related measure of support. The hypothesis that social support would be negatively related to the evaluation of threat was not supported. This research raises important questions related to the theories of hardiness, social support, and cognitive appraisal of stress. Implications for further research in this area are offered.     

The career development internship program. Pathway to enhanced nursing practice.

Nurse administrators can enhance nursing practice and improve patient care by providing clinical nurses with ways to develop and share their expertise in areas such as education, management, quality assurance, advanced clinical practice, and research. The authors describe the Career Development Internship Program that grew out of the Management Internship Program. This creative program allows for professional growth in specific fields while also developing leadership capability.     

Evaluation of a critical care nursing internship program.

Many hospitals have developed internship programs to assist in the movement of new graduates into the critical care unit. The purpose of this study was to evaluate an existing critical care nurse internship program. Five research questions were developed to guide the evaluation process. Results suggest that the goals of the program were met. Specific weaknesses in preparation of preceptors and knowledge base of interns were identified. High burnout scores were also identified, suggesting that new graduates may find the experience of working in critical care very stressful. Implications for revisions of the existing program and for others involved in similar programs are discussed.     

A computer program to support patient assessment and clinical decision-making in nursing education

This article reports on the development of a computer program for the recording of patient assessments performed by graduate nursing students. This program is part of a larger effort called Computer-Aided Research in Nursing (CARIN) that will also be used for data collection and retrieval. This article describes two phases of the current project. Other nursing diagnosis programs in existence are briefly reviewed, and formulation of the two initial steps of the nursing process, assessment and nursing diagnosis, are described.     

Developing and implementing a nursing research team in a clinical setting

The gap between research and practice that hinders the advancement of nursing practice is effected by knowledge, resources, perceptions, and expectations of nurses. The authors describe the development and implementation of a nursing research team in a large Midwest healthcare system, criterion used to identify the right personnel, nurse researcher roles that emerged after implementation, and infrastructure and administrative support that were essential to our success.     

Developing a productive nursing research program in a clinical institution

Many nursing administrators are faced with the challenge of developing productive nursing research programs. This article describes a systematic process that develops a framework that can be used to establish a nursing research program in a clinical institution. With this process, each newly developed phase of the program is integrated into the program's framework and is consistent with the previously developed elements. This article discusses specific ways to maximize the program's productivity, credibility, and scientific contribution by focusing time and resources on research and estimating potential studies' viability.