Robinson Memorial Hospital Hosts First Nurse Externship Program
Recently, Robinson Memorial Hospital embarked on a new opportunity
to encourage more nurses over the
long term to come work at Robinson Memorial Hospital.
Through a Nurse Extern Program at Robinson Memorial Hospital, nine student nurses from the Kent State University College of Nursing began working temporarily side-by-side with a nurse preceptor at Robinson Memorial.
"This is an opportunity for students to prepare for their professional nursing degree through a 10-week externship program, providing real hands-on experience," says Christine Hawkins, RN, Director, Special Projects and Coordinator of the Nurse Externship Program, at Robinson Memorial Hospital.
Becoming involved in this program was
no easy feat for the student nurses.
To qualify for the program, the students must have met selection criteria by the Kent State University College of Nursing, satisfactorily completed two semesters of junior year course work at Kent State University and received a reference from a clinical instructor along with documentation on a skills checklist of successfully completed skills. The student nurse extern candidates also had to complete a Robinson Memorial Hospital employment application, interview and employment physical. Each student nurse extern was then hired by the hospital as a temporary employee to work a total of 320 paid hours over the course of the summer.
The students had opportunities all over the hospital. They worked in The Birth Center at Robinson, the Operating Room, Emergency Department, Critical Care and Medical-Surgical Nursing.
Throughout their entire 10-week experience at Robinson Memorial Hospital they were assigned with a nurse preceptor and working with their schedule. The nurse preceptors, who are current, experienced RNs working at the hospital, are critical to the success of this program and were handpicked for this opportunity. While developing the program, a great deal of time was spent communicating what the expectations of the preceptor would be and ensuring the nurse was really interested in working with the nursing students.
"The student interaction with a nurse preceptor is very important," says Hawkins. "These are the formative years for a student. The preceptor will have an impact on the student's career goals as a nurse. The preceptor's leadership plays an important role in helping to determine the perceptions, the skill and the qualities this future nurse will have in a nursing career."
Five of the nine candidates already work
at Robinson Memorial Hospital and are currently pursuing their nursing degrees.
"We are really excited all nine candidates chose Robinson Memorial Hospital for their externship," says Hawkins. "The students had a choice in selecting the hospital where they wanted to go for this opportunity. Several
other hospitals in Northeast Ohio also participate in the Nurse Extern Program with Kent State University College of Nursing."
Some of the students have already completed clinical rotations at Robinson Memorial Hospital, and several had not previously rotated through the hospital.
"Not all the students have done clinicals here; they were amazed at the opportunities available at Robinson Memorial Hospital," says Hawkins.
The program has been in development since last year. The hospital and Kent State University were already affiliated in other clinical rotations, and this was a natural next step.
"We are excited about working with
Kent State University and providing this opportunity for future nurses," says Rose Brandau, RN, Vice President, Patient Care Services. "We look forward to working with the university on an ongoing basis to continue to bring more nurses into Portage County."
