Academic-Service Partnerships: Increasing the Advanced Nurse Workforce

Area of Science:

• Nursing Education
• Healthcare Administration

Background:

• Clinical education placement is a significant challenge for advanced practice registered nurse (APRN) programs.
• Hospitals and nursing schools often face difficulties in securing adequate clinical placement sites for students.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe the experiences of hospitals in forming academic-service partnerships.
• To identify facilitators and barriers in clinical education placement for APRN students through these partnerships.

Main Methods:

• Focus group and interview sessions were conducted with key stakeholders.
• Participants included hospital staff, nursing school administrators, clinical faculty, preceptors, and APRN students.
• Content analysis was used to interpret qualitative data from the Graduate Nurse Education demonstration project.

Main Results:

• Seven key themes emerged: APRN Student Enrollment, Clinical Placements/Process, Clinical Education Sites, Clinical Preceptors, Communication and Collaboration, Sustainability, and Funding Process.
• The study identified critical factors influencing the success of academic-service partnerships for clinical education.

Conclusions:

• Future partnerships should explore multi-regional collaborations to enhance APRN student enrollment and clinical placement opportunities.
• Sustained collaboration between academic institutions and healthcare providers is crucial for effective nursing education.