Advanced perioperative nursing elective for baccalaureate students

Area of Science:

• Nursing Education
• Surgical Nursing

Background:

• Perioperative nursing is crucial for surgical settings.
• Recruitment of nurses into perioperative roles is essential.
• A gap exists in experienced perioperative nursing staff.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe a two-elective perioperative nursing program.
• To increase baccalaureate and RN-baccalaureate students' exposure to perioperative nursing.
• To enhance graduate marketability and create a recruitment pipeline for perioperative nurses.

Main Methods:

• A collaborative program between nursing education and practice.
• Inclusion of both didactic and clinical components.
• Targeting baccalaureate nursing students and experienced RNs.

Main Results:

• The elective broadens student exposure to perioperative nursing.
• Graduates demonstrate increased marketability for perioperative roles.
• The program facilitates recruitment of new nurses into the specialty.

Conclusions:

• The described elective effectively introduces students to perioperative nursing.
• This educational approach addresses the need for perioperative nursing staff.
• The program benefits both students and healthcare facilities by creating a skilled workforce.