Rasmuson Foundation, Mat-Su Health Foundation, Bethel Community Services Foundation, Alaska State Hospital and Nursing Home Association

Mary Elizabeth Rider, Rasmuson Foundation

merider@alaska.net, 907-250-9608

Linda Fink, Alaska State Hospital and Nursing Home Association lindalfink@msn.com, 907-586-1790

Brief Project Synopsis: 

This project manifests in three components: Taking the Recruitment and Retention of Alaska Natives into Nursing to scale by expanding the program to Bethel, where there is a profound and urgent need for locally trained Native nurses; developing a rural generalist preceptorship program that trains newly graduated nurses or nurses changing specialties to work as rural specialists, and implementing that across hospitals statewide; and evaluating both projects.

Project Goals and Objectives:

Goal 1: Increasing racial and ethnic diversity of the nursing workforce: Recruitment and retention of Alaska Natives into nursing.

The objective of this goal is to facilitate the success of students in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta in gaining access to the clinical nursing major and completing the nursing program.  This is being accomplished through academic monitoring and advising, tutoring, monthly majors meetings, clinical rotations, and stipends provided by a Costco grant.

Goal 2:  Strengthening the competency of nurses to provide patient-centered care: preceptorships and rural generalist practice.

The objective of this goal is to increase the capacity of experienced nurses to precept newly graduated nurses, and increase access to training of newly graduated nurses so they may enter the field.  This is being accomplished by (1) develop a rural generalist curriculum for training preceptors statewide to teach newly graduated nurses specialty and facility-related skills; (2) develop a rural generalist curriculum for precepting newly graduated nurses statewide, (3) establish methods for hospitals to use internal resources to support preceptors. Establish statewide agreements on precepting new nurses, (4) deliver curricula to preceptors and nurses, and implement preceptor supports.