Implementing a Perioperative Nursing Student Summer Internship

Using qualitative research and a collaborative academic service partnership, we created an innovative 120-hour perioperative nursing summer internship for eight undergraduate nursing students in 2016. Recognizing that perioperative exposure is limited in the traditional baccalaureate program, this unpaid internship served to clarify student perceptions of perioperative nursing care and encourage graduates to meet perioperative workforce demands. We based the theoretical and practical student learning experiences on the AORN Periop 101 learning modules and included faculty-led discussions, student journaling, and onsite precepted clinical activities. Evaluation data revealed that students achieved an enhanced awareness of perioperative nursing, and a majority of the participants expressed a desire to enter the perioperative field after graduation. We suggest that stakeholders continue to strategize ways to maximize educational preparation to address the evolving health care market supply and demand.