Educating neonatal nurse practitioners in the 21st century

The purpose of this education project is to prepare neonatal nurse practitioners using a nonlinear (random exposure to information delivered in context rather than abstracting information as is done in a traditional lecture), asynchronous approach. The Internet-based 3-dimensional virtual "living world" classroom will have a living textbook and a virtual neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Deploying the program within a virtual living world will enhance program accessibility and overcome the challenges of nurses returning to school. Greater accessibility can help to alleviate the shortage of neonatal providers, which are needed to meet the needs of the growing population.A Neonatal Curriculum Consortium comprising expert neonatal nurse practitioners and faculty are developing multimedia learning modules for core content defined by national organizations and certifying bodies. Our Internet-based, multisite, nonlinear, asynchronous universal neonatal curriculum has at its core a 3-dimensional virtual "living text book" for didactic instruction and a "living world" NICU for "deliberate practice." The NICU will feature an interactive virtual infant patient. Our "Virtual NICU" will assist students to transition from the classroom, to the simulation laboratory, and ultimately to the clinical area. Providing clinical learning experiences in the virtual NICU will enhance the students' opportunities to learn to care for the culturally diverse populations they will serve as neonatal nurse practitioners.