ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Within the past several years, an innovative model for collaboration has emerged between schools of nursing and hospitals to increase the enrollment in schools of nursing by utilizing experienced staff nurses as hospital adjunct clinical instructors (HACI). The HACI is temporarily released from typical job duties to serve as a clinical instructor for a group of undergraduate nursing students. AIM: The purpose of this study is to determine if HACIs are as effective as faculty employed by schools of nursing. METHOD: A convenience sample of new graduate nurses participated in the descriptive study. The nurses were asked to evaluate their senior year medical-surgical clinical instructor using Reeve's Instrument to Measure Effectiveness of Clinical Instructors. RESULTS: There was no statistically significant difference in the clinical teaching effectiveness of HACIs and school of nursing faculty. CONCLUSION: This study provides early support for the use of HACIS. However, more studies are needed to validate their effectiveness.
Subject(s)
Clinical Competence/standards , Education, Nursing, Baccalaureate/standards , Faculty, Nursing/standards , Nursing Faculty Practice/standards , Humans , Nursing Education Research , WorkforceABSTRACT
In the United States, state laws develop basic practices to define the scopes of practice for registered nurses and licensed practical nurses (LPNs). The purpose of the study was to describe the actual practice patterns of LPNs working in North Carolina. The results of the study convey an unfavorable pattern regarding LPN scope of practice. Indications are that a paradigm shift might be required in order to reverse the pattern of overpractice by LPNs.
