“This course has allowed me to reinvent myself!” So says a recent participant in JCCC’s RN Refresher Academy course. Another alumna from the course said, “I really enjoyed the opportunity to be home to raise my kids, and I know that was what I was supposed to do. But getting back to the clinical setting …I forgot the feeling of satisfaction that comes when I know I am giving really good care … and that my being here is making a difference!”

The course, which prepares registered nurses (RNs) for a safe and successful return to patient care, was created in response to an increasing number of calls from RNs who had been away from the patient care arena and who wanted to return, but recognized they needed to “refresh their skills and knowledge base.”

Since the first class in spring 2005, nearly 200 RNs have successfully completed the course and returned to nursing in acute healthcare settings such as telemetry, intensive care and the PACU, long-term care and out-of-hospital settings such as school nursing, medical offices and clinics.

Currently, the course begins with eight weeks of didactic work. Participants come to JCCC for class two days each week. Prior to each class, participants receive materials designed to assist them in their review of content to be covered. While on campus each week, participants engage in activities designed to review the anatomy, physiology, pathophysiology, pharmacology and nursing care of patients with diseases and disorders associated with a particular body system. In addition, key psychomotor skills are reviewed and demonstrated. Participants are then expected to practice these skills and eventually meet with a faculty member to demonstrate their proficiency. Skills reviewed include medication administration, phlebotomy, venipuncture and the administration of blood products.

The returning nurses then apply this knowledge and skills in a patient-care scenario in the JCCC Healthcare Simulation Center, where they care for human patient simulator “patients” that present with signs and symptoms consistent with the disease or disorder being studied. The simulation center allows participants to remember what it feels like to care for patients, while faculty facilitators remind participants that this is a “safe” environment. Participants can try out their skills, practice critical thinking and even make mistakes prior to actual clinical practice.

Once participants have completed these weeks at JCCC, they move into the clinical setting where they provide patient care alongside faculty from JCCC. During clinicals, course members have the opportunity to truly pull it all together as they continue to learn and reconnect with their psychomotor and critical thinking skills. After successful completion of the clinical portion of the course, participants receive a certificate of completion and nine hours of college credit.

“Reaching into the rich treasure-trove of nurses who have been away from patient care, but who are motivated to return, the JCCC RN Refresher Academy is here to help them return safely, successfully and with a renewed commitment to their patients and to their profession,” said Clarissa Craig, dean, health care professions and wellness.