Nurse Education, Practice, Quality and Retention - Workforce Expansion Program - The George Washington University (GWU) School of Nursing (SON) proposes Registered Nurses Beyond the Beltway: Driving Up ABSN Enrollment and Clinical Training in Long-term and Acute Care in Rural Areas of Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia (RNs Beyond the Beltway), which will leverage clinical partnerships with long-term and acute care facilities serving rural populations to increase access and care quality, while also expanding the RN workforce. The long-term goal will address health disparities between metro and non-metro areas by expanding the RN workforce trained for increased access to rural patient populations, interprofessional delivery, and culturally aligned care. GWU SON’s Accelerated Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing (ABSN), including the Veterans to Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing (VBSN) track, is completed in four consecutive semesters and gets mature students into practice sooner than traditional BSN programs. RNs Beyond the Beltway will impact the RN workforce by increasing the ABSN/VBSN enrollment by 20% across the four-year project performance period, while effectively engaging rural long-term and acute care clinical partners, to sharpen a clinical training focus on a mounting workforce need. SON has been hoping to increase enrollments; this grant will actualize that aim. Partners are skilled nursing, assisted living, hospital facilities serving two counties in Maryland, three in Virginia, and two in West Virginia. Our five goals for RNs Beyond the Beltway, to expand the nursing workforce in rural areas and in long-term and acute care, are as follows: (1) Increase number of students enrolled in the SON’s ABSN/VSBN program (5%/year, 20% total), retained (1%/year, 4% total), and graduated (2.5%/year, 10% total). (2) Enhance specialized training in long-term and acute care settings with a minimum of 80 hours of additional training in settings focused on these types of care, ensuring that at least 50% of hours are dedicated to long-term care, and increasing the competence of students caring for patients in long-term and acute care settings in rural areas. (3) Increase employment of pre-licensure nursing students in long-term and acute care settings post-graduation by facilitating job placements in long-term and acute care facilities in rural areas, establishing new relationships with one to two long-term or acute healthcare facilities each project year to secure employment for nursing graduates, and tracking employment percentages for graduates, to evaluate program effectiveness. (4) Increase the number of preceptors and clinical faculty by recruiting and training three new preceptors and two clinical faculty to support nursing education and retaining 80% of existing preceptors and clinical faculty by providing ongoing support. (5) Support trainee readiness to practice in interprofessional care teams that provide care to patients with acute and/or chronic health conditions in long-term and acute care settings by developing and integrating specialized interprofessional education curricula focused on long-term and acute care, enhancing student support systems to facilitate readiness for interprofessional practice, and establishing or expanding collaborative partnerships to enhance interprofessional care training and practice Throughout all project goals, we will embed culturally sensitive training and Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) education into didactic sessions, simulations, and clinical training. Didactic sessions will include SDOH-focused modules tailored to rural health challenges. Simulation exercises will feature SDOH case studies for practical learning. Clinical training will offer hands-on experience in rural settings. Faculty and preceptors’ workshops will equip instructors to integrate SDOH concepts effectively, addressing diverse populations' needs. Funding Preference 1: RNs Beyond the Beltway will substantially benefit rural populations.
