Shenandoah University, in collaboration with Valley Health and the Virginia Hospital and Healthcare Association, is working to tackle the region’s nursing shortage through a program that will enhance the training of aspiring nurses and create a sustainable pipeline of new health care professionals.
NextGen Nurses will draw upon the expertise of semi-retired and retiring nurses to help train the next generation of nurses before they leave the profession.
The program, which is designed to provide a replicable model that can be used throughout the state, will create a reliable source of new nurses in the Shenandoah Valley by increasing regional opportunities to meet clinical training requirements through preceptorship and simulation.
The NextGen Nurses program is funded by a $496,000 GO Virginia Economic Resilience and Recovery Grant.
GO Virginia is a state-funded initiative administered by the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development that strengthens and diversifies Virginia’s economy and fosters the creation of higher-wage jobs in strategic industries.
“Shenandoah University is grateful to have the support and financial backing of GO Virginia and the Department of Housing and Community Development for such a vital program during a critical period for health and nursing care in Virginia and across the country,” said Lisa Levinson, M.S.N, acting dean of the Eleanor Wade Custer School of Nursing. “We’re proud to partner with Valley Health on such an important endeavor to facilitate an increased nursing workforce in the region. We aim to ultimately improve the quality of life in the Northern Shenandoah Valley and provide a model to be followed across the state to help address the nationwide nursing shortage.”
Workforce shortages in the health care sector were exacerbated by the pandemic, including an exodus of nursing professionals and a shortage of clinical trainers for nursing students.
The program will develop a series of scalable, relevant and easy-to-use educational on-demand modules designed to accelerate training for retired nurses, and other eligible nurses, to become clinical preceptors.
“Clinical training is one of the most pressing concerns in contemporary nursing education, making this NextGen Nurses program all the more important,” said Shenandoah University Provost Cameron McCoy, Ph.D. “We are grateful for the continued partnership of Valley Health, GO Virginia, VHHA and DHCD as we collectively improve nursing education in the Shenandoah Valley. At Shenandoah University, our nursing faculty are perpetual innovators and, as such, are exceptionally well positioned to lead and partner in development of these essential modules.”
Valley Health, with the assistance of the Virginia Department of Health, will recruit and onboard nurses who no longer work full time at the bedside to complete the SU-developed training modules before being employed as clinical preceptors.
“This academic-practice partnership with Shenandoah University is an important element in our broader workforce development strategy,” said Theresa Trivette, DNP, Valley Health chief nurse executive. “It is critically important that we draw upon the knowledge of our most experienced nurses in the region to help train and support our newest nurses to assure we are able to continue providing the highest quality of care for our community.”
Additionally, NextGen Nurses will increase opportunities to use simulation as a supplemental option in clinical preceptorships. Shenandoah has hired a director of clinical simulation and obtained the necessary equipment to create a simulation lab capable of fulfilling up to 25 percent of the 500 clinical hours required for aspiring nurses. The simulation lab will reduce the need of SU’s School of Nursing preceptorships by 25 percent, relieving some of the burden on local health care providers to serve as preceptor and/or clinical sites, a role that has become more challenging due to the growing workforce shortages.
The goal of the NextGen Nurses program is to hire 35 retired or retiring nurses as clinical preceptors by June 2024.
“GO Virginia Region 8 is thrilled to provide funding for the NextGen Nurses project, addressing critical workforce shortages exacerbated by COVID-19,” said Chris Kyle, GO Virginia Region 8 chair. “Region 8 will benefit from this project, which will help rebuild capacity in the health care system as we continue to focus on this critical health care shortage in our region.”
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Crystal Graham
