Newswise — PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Step onto the third floor of The Miriam Hospital in Providence and you will notice busy health professionals engaged in the art and science of patient care. However, you likely wouldn’t notice what else is taking place: real-world education of future nurses.
Here, registered nurses work one-on-one with seniors from the University of Rhode Island’s College of Nursing, part of the Academic Health Collaborative. The intense clinical experience, called a Dedicated Education Unit, is a mentoring model developed in Australia to address nursing faculty shortages, said Katherine Paquette, assistant clinical professor of nursing at URI.
“It has evolved into a need for clinical experiences that facilitate the transition into professional roles,” Paquette said of the program URI began offering in 2012. “It’s a model that has caught on because it is so successful in preparing students to practice.”
Indeed, the Dedicated Education Unit is aptly named: students, faculty, nurses and the hospital are clearly dedicated. Each RN is paired with a student, working side by side for more than 100 hours during that student’s final semester. Students report to duty on the nurses’ schedules — weekends, nights or 12-hour shifts — and help care for the nurses’ patients.
In a traditional clinical setting, one faculty member is paired with eight students, without a designated unit nurse. “You cannot be in all places at once and can’t assume the level of responsibility for patients that the staff is able to. When students are paired with staff nurses, they learn accountability for the management of multiple patients, which is a competency that is vital to success in practice.” Paquette said.
URI alumna Alison Rosener has been a preceptor for two years, participated in the program as a student and was then hired by the hospital. “I had an amazing experience, and I wanted to pay it back,” said Rosener, who is pursuing her doctorate of nursing practice at URI. “I really like putting nursing students in a real-life situation where you can learn critical thinking skills.”
Paquette said the hospital has hired about two dozen students from the program.
Student Natalie Sidman was paired with Rosener, and the two recently worked a 16-hour shift. “I think it’s really important to experience that because I’m going to be doing these shifts as an RN. To have the guidance of Ali has been amazing.”
Preceptor Joanne Daniels wanted to participate because she did not have a similar opportunity while a nursing student in Massachusetts. “It was a huge gap. I was totally unprepared when I became an RN,” said Daniels, who has been a preceptor three times.
Student Amanda Millan worked with Daniels. “I was not confident going into the clinical setting. Joanne has helped me build my confidence and focus on critical thinking skills. She pushes me,” Millan said. “She gives me the power to make autonomous decisions.”
“The feedback has been tremendous. Students develop confidence in themselves, think critically, build time management skills,” said Paquette, who works closely with preceptors and nurse managers to provide a rigorous and rewarding experience. “You see students really grow.”
The preceptors benefit as well. “They feel it helps keep them enthusiastic in their profession. It contributes to positive patient outcomes and helps their professional development,” said Paquette, who does rounds with the students and works with the preceptors to align the experience with curriculum objectives.
“It’s rewarding and helpful,” Daniels said. “Amanda asks questions about things I am not thinking about anymore. I break it down for her and explain how everything fits together. There are things you never learn in nursing school.”
Ewelina Dembinska said the experience has helped her connect all the pieces of her nursing education. “It’s powerful when you can form relationships with a mentor,” she said.
Competition is strong for the roughly 16 to 20 student assignments, and the College hopes to expand the model so all seniors can participate. “We feel strongly that this is an experience we need to give all our students,” Paquette said.
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