For the Tomahawk Leader
WISCONSIN – Aspirus Health is accepting applications for a program geared towards new nurses who are seeking a hospital position but may be unsure of where they want to practice.
Aspirus said the New Grad Apprentice (NGA) program offers new graduate nurses the opportunity to work in several different inpatient hospital departments prior to selecting a final position.
“Throughout the program, nurses experience different patient populations, unit cultures and workflows before committing to a unit,” Aspirus stated.
The NGA program currently offers two versions – classic and critical care.
The classic version is one year in length and allows new nurses to experience seven inpatient units, six weeks at a time, both in med/surg and intensive care unit (ICU) step-down, according to Aspirus.
The critical care version is six months in length and takes new nurses down one of two paths, cardiac or med/surg.
“Once the new nurse chooses their path, they will orientate and work on the corresponding ICU step-down unit, then cycle through both the cardiac and med/surg ICUs and end in the emergency department,” Aspirus explained.
At the conclusion of the full rotation, the nurse will then meet with leaders to discuss what they think is the best-matched unit.
Aspirus noted that if a nurse finds a unit where they would like to stay permanently, the NGA program staff will work with the unit leadership to get the nurse a position there.
“The goal is to help nurses find what ultimately makes them happy, because when you do what you love, you can provide the best care possible,” said Elizabeth Flora, Aspirus NGA Program Manager.
“The NGA program allows for individuals to have a dynamic and unique experience on the units by allowing them to orientate and work on their own while still being supported,” Aspirus stated. “Along the way, each nurse is provided with support from the float pool and department specific leadership teams and additional programs geared towards new nurses.”
Applications are accepted year-round for the NGA program. Nurses must be in their last semester or within six months of graduation from nursing school and obtain a registered nursing license prior to their start date.
Visit www.bit.ly/3nHsO5g for an application.
For more information, contact Flora at [email protected].
