Fast Track Back
FAQ |
Re-Entry to Practice for Registered Nurses
The Fast Track Back: Re-entry to Practice for Registered Nurses Program prepares Registered Nurses for re-entry into hospital-based nursing practice through thirty (30) hours of classroom and high fidelity simulation learning and seventy-five (75) hours of hospital-based practice with an experienced Registered Nurse Clinical Coach.
This program is designed for Registered Nurses with a current nursing license in the state of Pennsylvania to refresh their nursing skills. This program is a recognized refresher program and not a reinstatement program, which is required in the event a Registered Nurse has let the nursing license expire.
We offer Fast Track Back to Re-entry Nurses at the University of Pittsburgh Oakland and University of Pittsburgh-Johnstown campus. Lectures are given at the Oakland campus and videoconferenced simultaneously to the Johnstown campus. The advantage to attending the videoconferencing in Johnstown is that Re-entry Nurses from the Johnstown area will only have to drive to Oakland for two Wednesdays to attend the human simulation learning experiences at the WISER Center. They will receive the same classroom content at the same time as the Re-entry Nurses on the Oakland campus. A University of Pittsburgh faculty member, Dr. Nancy Grove, will be in attendance at the Johnstown campus to facilitate the Program and to assign clinical placements in the Johnstown area.
This is a 6-week program that has class one day a week for five (5) weeks, described in more detail below. Clinical times are added as follows: 3rd week for eight (8) hours; 4th week for sixteen (16) hours; 5th week for sixteen (16) hours; and the 6th week is a thirty-seven (37) hours clinical experience.
Session Descriptions:
- Module I: Introduction to Professional Issues
In Module I, the Re-entry RN will receive an introduction to the program course and complete an individual learning needs assessment. Courseweb Online Blackboard System, with hands-on training, will be explained so the Re-entry RN will have access to self-learning modules and be able to review coursepaperwork. Professional issues will be discussed, and pharmacology pre-test will be administered. - Module II: Pharmacology
In Module II, the Re-entry RN will learn current theory and treatment modalities so that she/he may safely administer antimicrobial agents, selected cardiac therapies, diuretics, and insulin. A pharmacology post-test will be administered. - Module III: Clinical Decision Making and Medical Surgical Nursing Part I
The first of two (2) clinical simulation modules will include a review of physical assessment techniques and the management of the adult who experiences an acute or complex illness with an alteration in multiple body systems. The Re-entry RN’s ability to apply the nursing process, using critical thinking skills, is expanded
through classroom and clinical activities. Learning activities will take place in the Learning Skills Lab and the WISER Simulation Center (Peter M. Winter Institute for Simulation, Education and Research). - Module IV: Clinical Decision Making and Medical Surgical Nursing Part II
The second simulation module will expand on Module III and incorporate common admitting diagnoses of the adult client. Additional medical surgical nursing topics will be explored. Learning activities will include the lectures, and WISER Simulation Center scenarios. - Module V: Current Trends and Issues
This class will prepare the Re-entry RN for entry into practice in the acute care environment. Professional issues, patient safety, and cultural diversity are selected topics covered in classroom lectures and Courseweb Online Blackboard System learning.
Registration Fee: $1,300 – covers the cost of the program, textbooks, lunch and parking for the didactic and simulation components in Oakland Campus
Liability Insurance fee: $12
Location: First-Floor Lobby, Victoria Building
Spring and fall sessions of classes are offered during the calendar year.
Continuing Nursing Education Credits
This program awards 105.0 continuing nursing education contact hours through the American Nurses Credentialing Center. The University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing is an accredited provider of continuing nursing education by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation.
For more information, call 412-624-3156 or email conted@pitt.edu