Medford-based healthcare nonprofit La Clinica is starting a nurse practitioner residency program, one of only a few in Oregon, as part of an initiative to ensure a strong healthcare workforce within La Clinica and around the community.
New nurse practitioner graduates from around the country can apply for the year-long training position and emerge fully prepared to serve patients in a variety of settings. Nurse practitioners are licensed practitioners who can work independently of physicians in Oregon and are increasingly filling the role of the patient’s primary provider in healthcare settings as physician shortages increase across the nation.
“We recognize that there’s often a post-school period when new nurse practitioners really need additional training to get up to speed and be able to start contributing as full members of a clinic’s staff,” said La Clinica Chief Medical Officer Chris Alftine, an internist. “In this program, they’ll learn what they need to know, help us serve our patients, and benefit the larger community when they decide to stay and practice here.”
La Clinica is accepting as many as six new nurse practitioners into the program in its first year and will build the program over several years. Applications for the program that starts in October are open here now.
Post-graduate residencies are common in many parts of medicine, but they are relatively new for nurse practitioner graduates. A national organization, the Consortium for Advanced Practice Providers, began offering accreditation in 2016 and lists one other Oregon primary care nurse practitioner training site, in the Portland area, on its website. La Clinica will apply to be the second.
The new program is part of a larger workforce training initiative within La Clinica’s The Learning Well education and support service. The initiative’s aim is to contribute to a strong workforce for La Clinica and the larger community, which long has been designated a healthcare worker shortage area. As part of the workforce training initiative, The Learning Well is building training programs for dental, medical, and mental health assistants; internships; mentorships; and coaching programs.
“La Clinica’s nurse practitioner residency program is in response to the critical need for well supported and confident primary care providers,” said Susan Hearn, officer for The Learning Well, La Clinica’s education and support service. “New graduate nurse practitioner residents receive coordinated training with clinical experience in primary and specialty settings, gradually increasing the number and complexity of their patients. Primary care longevity and satisfaction increase with this added year of training.”
La Clinica is applying for two federal grants this spring to help in the program’s launch. One provides scholarships for nurse practitioner students and the other supports the program.
Контакт: Сьюзан Хирн, сотрудник Learning Well, 541-494-4828, shearn@laclinicahealth.org; Julie Wurth, communications officer, 541-512-3153 or 541-840-6513, jwurth@laclinicahealth.org
О La Clinica
La Clinica предлагает ориентированную на оздоровление медицинскую, стоматологическую, психиатрическую помощь и помощь при расстройствах, связанных с употреблением наркотиков, в 29 местах: шесть первичных медицинских центров, Acute Care Clinic, East Medford Dental Clinic, 19 школьных центров, мобильный центр и учебный центр. Хотя его миссия направлена на обеспечение доступа для людей с низким доходом, La Clinica открыт для всех. La Clinica был основан в 1989 году для обслуживания потребностей в первичной и профилактической помощи мигрантов и сезонных сельскохозяйственных рабочих в округе Джексон. В 2001 году в ответ на растущую потребность в доступной первичной медицинской помощи La Clinica расширил свою сферу деятельности, чтобы обслуживать каждого члена сообщества. Все услуги предоставляются независимо от платежеспособности пациента и по скользящей шкале для незастрахованных и малообеспеченных.
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