The Problem or Barriers to Clinical Placements:

Through our partnership and in discussion with nursing leaders across the nation, we've identified the following critical barriers to providing students with the clinical experience that is essential to their professional development:

Knowledge about potential open placements.

Time required to secure placements – both in the school and the clinical facility.

Redundant clinical requirements & orientation content for students & faculty.

Time required in the clinical facility to orient multiple student groups to the facility.

Time to secure new clinical facility contracts.

Through the TCPS©, we have designed solutions that are streamlining the clinical placement of students within healthcare facilities. These solutions have been designed to address all but the last of these critical barriers. It was determined by the Tennessee Clinical Placement Partnership (TCPP) that the complexities of clinical contracts were beyond the initial efforts of the group.

"Qualified nursing students are being turned away because of the lack of education capacity. Based upon a recent research study within the state, projections indicate that if things are allowed to continue, by 2020 there will be a shortage of registered nurses in the state of 35,000! In Tennessee for academic year 2004-2005, 2,383 qualified applicants were turned away from nursing schools. "

Ann Duncan, MPH, RN - Executive Director of the Tennessee Center for Nursing, quoted in the Nashville City Paper on April 05, 2005.

© 2008

The Problem | TCPS© Solutions | TN Partners | TN Portal | Contact Us | User's Portal