The AU School of Nursing had 48 MSN Nurse Practitioner clinical students on campus for the summer intensive Nursing 7330 Diagnostic Reasoning and Clinical Management course and for the Objective Structured Clinical Experience (OSCE) simulation.
“The OSCE simulation is an opportunity for students to evaluate and treat a patient (portrayed by standardized patients who are trained to portray actual patients with complaints, symptoms, etc.), said Assistant Clinical Professor Rachael Sweeney. “The students spent the day attending lectures from course experts in fields pertaining to NP education and patient treatment and management. Students are evaluated by NP faculty (grading faculty are watching and listening from a control room). Following this session, the students have an opportunity to evaluate their recorded video from the patient encounter, which consists of a debrief session with a faculty member to critique their performance.”
“The graduate students who entered the MSN program between fall 2019 and summer 2020, are expected to graduate in 2022,” said Administrative Specialist Jennifer Edwards. “They are all full-time RNs who are currently practicing in a variety of settings including hospitals, clinics, etc. Some work in women’s health, pediatrics, orthopedics, emergency or urgent care.”
A few of these students were Auburn graduates, but several earned their undergraduate degrees from other colleges, and live in other states. “Currently enrolled students are from Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, Minnesota, Mississippi, North Carolina, North Dakota, South Carolina and Tennessee. They will be back on campus in early September for additional course days to include theory (didactic) and practicum (clinical – hands-on labs and simulations) courses,” Sweeney added.
AUSON’s MSN Graduate Program prepares individuals for a variety of advanced roles in administration, teaching, research, informatics, and direct patient care. Nurses at this level are in high demand as clinical nurse leaders, nurse managers, clinical educators, health policy consultants, research assistants, public health nurses, and in many other capacities. Admission to the program is competitive and enrollment is limited. Full-time primary care nurse practitioner students can complete their plan of study in six semesters with summer admission. Part-time students' program completion time will vary based on required prerequisites and how part-time the student plans to be. All graduate work towards a graduate degree must be completed within a period of 5 calendar years from enrollment into the first graduate course.
