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Project to improve primary care nurse practitioner clinical education wins FMHS Impact Award

Project addresses urgent need for a structured, evidence-based approach to improving primary care NP clinical education.

Implementing a Model of Excellence for Interprofessional Primary Care NP Clinical Education, a project led by the Ingram School of Nursing ISoN) Associate Professor Irene Sarasua, was one of five projects awarded a Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences Impact Award.

The project brought together faculty, researchers, nurse practitioners and health managers working at the Ingram School of Nursing (ISoN), the CIUSSS de l’Ouest-de-l’île-de-Montréal (CIUSSS ODIM), and the CIUSSS de Centre-ouest-de-l’île-de-Montréal (CIUSSS CODIM), to address the urgent need for a structured, evidence-based approach to improving Primary Care Nurse Practitioner (NP) clinical education.

As Professor Sarasua explains, “As the profession evolved and the number of primary care NP students grew, it became increasingly evident that we needed to work together to strengthen our capacity to effectively support NP learners in clinical settings while expanding access to high-quality internships. Previously, through the Healthcare Excellence Canada EXTRA Program, we had developed a conceptual Model of Excellence for Interprofessional Primary Care NP Clinical Education. Thankfully, in 2023, we were able to secure a two-year grant from the ɬ﷬-Ingram School of Nursing Collaborative to implement, evaluate and refine this model.”

During the first phase of the project, four priority areas were identified, with working groups established for each: (1) student internship trajectory co-design; (2) NP supervisor training; (3) NP supervisor support; (4) and patient engagement in clinical education. After two years of diligent efforts by everyone on the team, the working groups delivered several high impact achievements, including the development of a six-module online training program for supervisors; the creation of a supportive community of practice; the introduction of a standardized pre-internship supervisor checklist; and the implementation of a multilingual patient-feedback questionnaire, available in 11 languages, allowing patients to be engaged in providing feedback to PCNP students. Thus far, 100% of patient respondents who filled out the questionnaire reported that they valued the opportunity to provide formal feedback to NP students. Supervisors provided equally strong feedback, with all of the supervisors who participated in the community of practice agreeing that these meetings had been helpful.

Speaking on behalf of the team, Marie-Claude Goyer, Director of the School’s PCNP Concentration, notes that the strength of this innovative project lies in the depth and breadth of the partnership between the ISoN’s academic program and the clinical settings. “By engaging supervisors, clinicians, managers, faculty members, students, and patients, we were able to strengthen the quality and capacity of Primary Care NP clinical education across the ɬ﷬ network, establishing a sustainable foundation for the continued growth of the NP workforce.”

Congratulations to the team on this important achievement and well-deserved recognition:

Irene Sarasua, Jacqueline Bocking, Nadia Doiron, Rosanna Zappavigna, Dalila Benhaberou-Brun, Emmanuelle Catanèse, Michèle Desmarais, Diana Dima, Marie-Andrée Gaudreau, Maggie Ghaleb, Michel Godin, Marie-Claude Goyer, Beverley-Tracey John, Elise Lagarde, Jérôme Ouellet, Patricia Robitaille, Serena Slater, Kelley Kilpatrick.

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