Operationalization of Clinical Placements in Graduate Nursing

Background: Nurse practitioner (NP) program accreditation standards require that programs secure clinical placements for all students. As NP programs increase enrollment to meet the demand for primary care providers, it is vital that they deploy a formalized clinical placement process that ensures all students have a clinical placement. Problem: Although NP programs have consistently increased enrollment, the shortage of clinical sites and preceptors continues to be a barrier to admission. Approach: Described in this article is the operationalization of graduate nursing clinical placement at one large university with 7 NP tracks. Outcomes: A formalized clinical placement process ensures that all students receive an appropriate placement and graduate on time. Having a dedicated team of NP faculty members to provide clinical placements services for NP students is highly effective.