The purpose of the research study is to describe the impact of implementing a 12-week online NCLEX online preparation guided by a master or doctoral prepared ATI nurse educator coach. The goal is to improve clinical judgment, confidence levels, and first-time pass rates for IEN.
The market opportunity for nurses educated outside the US has never been greater. The American Nurses Association (ANA) is projecting that 690,000 nurses will exit the workforce by the year 2024, These retirements, coupled with current nurse shortages, led the ANA to estimate a 1.2 million gap in nurses in 9 years. Thanks to strong cultural ties to the US, nurses from the Philippines have a unique opportunity to help fill the talent shortfall (ANA, n.d.)
This healthcare dynamic prompted ATI Nursing Education and a large multinational life sciences company to embark on a joint venture to accomplish three specific goals: 1) improve the probability of IEN passing the NCLEX on their first attempt, 2) improve the confidence levels of the IEN, and 3) improve clinical judgment for the IEN. Historically, these nurses’ first-time pass rarely surpassed 40 percent. The goal of the partnership was to build up content knowledge so that the IEN could successfully pass the NCLEX exam with a first-time pass rate of at least 75% in 3 months or less.
The proposed solution was the Virtual-ATI International NCLEX Review Program. The Virtual-ATI International NCLEX Review Program is an asynchronous, 12-week online tutoring program in which an experienced ATI US nurse educator works directly with an IEN reviewing substantive content with an individualized approach in preparation for the NCLEX. Each ATI US educator possessed at least a masters or doctoral degree and five years’ teaching experience.
In early July 2017, the first cohort of IEN took the NCLEX-RN and saw exceptional results: a 100% pass rate. These results led to a master service level contract between ATI and its partner to enroll multiple rolling cohorts of nurses (usually 20 per month) on an annual subscription model. The exceptional outcomes of increasing NCLEX pass rates has led to partnerships with other institutions seeking the same goal of increased NCLEX pass rates for the IEN. As additional cohorts have completed the online program, pass rates have continued to be in the 80% range. For example, the IEN using the Virtual-ATI International NCLEX Review Program were significantly more likely to pass the NCLEX on their first attempt at an 88.5% than were the IEN candidates not using the ATI NCLEX preparation program at a 39.2% (NCSBN, 2017).
This model is truly a win-win for everyone involved. After passing the NCLEX exam, the IEN can now support US hospitals with on-call nursing support/first level triage (Center for Connected Health Policy, n.d.). The rapid growth of telehealth for healthcare delivery has exposed the lack of support with nurses available in North America (Dimitrios, Shoshana, & Hollander, 2015). This telehealth model is a win for the hospital who can utilize the IEN to provide late night staffing at a more advantageous hourly rate, and a win for the IEN as they earn higher wages and it puts them onto a path to ensuing immigration should they choose. The non-US government benefits from finding opportunities for its abundant nursing talent, and the remittances received from nurses working outside the country. The US benefits by developing an accelerated pipeline to fill its nursing shortage.