Article
Broadening their horizons: A rural and urban nursing student exchange program in primary care
Journal of Professional Nursing
(2024)
Abstract
Educational strategies that allow students to experience patient care in both rural and urban settings are
imperative to the recruitment and retention of nurses for medically underserved populations or health professional
shortage areas. Two state schools of nursing (one urban-oriented and one rural-oriented) in the Mid-
Atlantic region were awarded Health Resources and Service Administration (HRSA) project funding to
educate nursing students and registered nurses in community-based primary care settings. This article will
discuss an innovative rural-urban baccalaureate nursing student exchange model intended to increase understanding
of enhanced RN roles in community-based primary care settings.
Two project teams collaborated to create a new learning model, a rural-urban exchange, by implementing a
Primary Care Camp. The camp included shared didactic content, reflection exercises, historical and cultural
considerations, and clinical immersion to allow students in both programs to have on-site rural and urban
learning experiences. Faculty collected informal voluntary student feedback through a debrief after their Primary
Care Camp experience to assess their understanding of the enhanced RN Role in primary care and how it may
affect their future nursing practice.
Student feedback suggests that the students met project goals and appreciated the rural and urban exchange
experience. This project is an innovative approach that offers guidance for implementing primary care education
in a way that supports the current primary care RN role, builds the future workforce, and provides suggestions for
replicability.
Keywords
- primary care nurse,
- nurse education,
- workforce development,
- rural workforce,
- urban workforce
Disciplines
Publication Date
Winter January, 2024
Citation Information
Hallel Basco, Tina Switzer, Kimberly Davis, Christine Lam, et al.. "Broadening their horizons: A rural and urban nursing student exchange program in primary care" Journal of Professional Nursing Vol. 50 (2024) p. 121 - 128 Available at: http://works.bepress.com/tamara-zurakowski/6/