Academic Practice Partnerships and Nurse Residency Programs

Purpose: The purpose of this ongoing research is to evaluate the mission and supporting activites of the Northeast Region VA Nursing Alliance (NERVANA) related to the Post Baccalaureate Nurse Residency Program.  NERVANA was formed in 2007 and includes six schools of nursing.  The mission of the academic practice partnership is to employ an innovative educational model to expand and enrich nursing students and faculty, to educate nursing students in the care of veterans, and to expose nursing students to the advanced model of medical informatics, patient safety, quality improvement, and integrated systems of care employed by the VAs national healthcare system. 

Methods: The academic practice partnership collaborated to develop a post baccalaureate nurse residency program. The goal of the residency program is to bridge baccalaureate education and professional nursing practice.  Through the initial and ongoing evaluation of the program, the commitment of resources is evaluated in an effort to immerse the nurse residents in an experience to practice comprehensive patient care in a setting that incorporates continuous quality assessment and improvement though evidence based practice.

Results: The evalutions of the program support the academic practice partnerships.  Through the NERVANA collaboration, the programs goals have been achieved and the outcomes are positive.

Conclusion:

The program has been successful in: 1) the development of a collaborative program that builds upon the academic-practice partnership of NERVANA, 2) the development of competencies for new RNs which include clinical practice, leadership roles, professional development and evidence based practice, 3) an increased level of interprofessional engagement throughout  the VA BHS, 4)serving as a transitional bridge between the nursing models and content acquired in the NERVANA schools and the VA BHS, and 5) reducing the turnover among new nurses.  Therefore, the VA BSH will continue to provide high quality, patient-centered care to our veterans as we support the development of professional nurses into practice.