A rite of passage: The White Coat Ceremony for advanced practice registered nursing students.

ABSTRACT: Since 1993, when the Gold Foundation held its first White Coat Ceremony (WCC) to highlight humanism in medicine, many health professions have launched these ceremonies. In 2021, the University of Colorado College of Nursing hosted its first WCC. Postevent, a seven-question survey was sent to all faculty, staff, and student participants. The analytic question driving this program evaluation was as follows: "What is the significance of the White Coat Ceremony to APRN students?" Quantitative data from survey items were overwhelmingly positive; qualitative analysis of open-ended survey text reinforced the central WCC concept of Being/Becoming an APRN and elicited four themes: recognition, transition, symbolism, and connection. A detailed analysis of these themes is presented.

Program implementation and outcomes from three cohorts of the nurse-family partnership nurse residency program.

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this paper is to describe a Nurse-Family Partnership (NFP) Nurse Residency Program (NRP) and program outcomes. METHODS: Dual methods were used to evaluate the first three cohorts of the NFP NRP. Participants were new NFP nurses, most working in Colorado. Pre-(n = 42) and post-program (n = 26) surveys were completed using the Individual Workplace Perception Scale (IWPS) and endorsement of program objectives; key informant interviews were done with the initial cohort. Descriptive statistics and unpaired t-tests (for the IWPS) were used to explain program effectiveness and efficacy. RESULTS: Forty-two NFP nurses participated in the program at the onset. There was consistent attendance (92% or more) among those who finished and modest individual attrition during the length of the program. Participants reported high levels of satisfaction with the content and meeting program objectives; there were no significant differences on pre- and post-program IWPS scores. CONCLUSIONS: The program was well-received by program participants and has the potential to contribute to the professional development of new NFP nurses.

Inconsistency in Faculty and Student Perceptions of DNP and PhD Leader Scholarly Activity.

OBJECTIVE: We aimed to quantify faculty and student perceptions of scholarly activities for doctor of nursing practice (DNP) and PhD leaders. BACKGROUND: The American Association of Colleges of Nursing describes DNP as a practice-focused degree and PhD as a research-focused degree. In 2016, the Council on Graduate Education for Administration in Nursing (now Association for Leadership Science in Nursing) published in the Journal of Nursing Administration sample practice objectives for DNP and research objectives for PhD leaders. METHODS: Using the published objectives, we surveyed faculty and students to quantify congruence with the publication and consistency within groups. The data informed intraprofessional education constructed using action research. RESULTS: There was low congruence between faculty and student responses with the article. PhD faculty had the least, and PhD students, the greatest, consistency in survey responses. CONCLUSIONS: Confusion exists within our faculty and students around differentiating PhD and DNP scholarly activities. Data supported need to clarify scholarly role boundaries through intraprofessional education.