Nursing Clinicals

Provided is a list of clinical courses with the required number of clinical hours, an overview of the clinical experience, description of appropriate setting(s), acceptable preceptor certifications or licensures, and if telehealth is permitted. 

NURSE 7145 Procedures and Diagnostics
Clinical Hours: 90
Overview: Initial clinical experience, introducing students to problem-focused visits and common advanced practice procedures and diagnostics. Upon completion of the on-campus days where you will learn hands-on skills that prepare you to begin clinicals, you may begin your clinical experience.  
Setting: ER or urgent care setting (must be a general urgent care). No more than 45 hours in a more specific specialty area (i.e. Radiology, ortho, plastics, derm, etc.) with instructor approval. 
Preceptors: NP, CNS, MD, or DO
Telehealth: Not accepted

NURSE 8210 Special Health Care Needs of Children
Clinical Hours: 90
Overview:  All 90 hours will be spent in clinical with a pediatric health care provider where advanced assessment skills are applied to evaluate the family and child for specialty care visits.
Setting: A pediatric specialty clinic, teen clinic, or school setting would be ideal. CNS students are required to spend approximately 45 hours in a clinical setting with a pediatric health care provider where advanced assessment and diagnostic skills are applied to evaluate and manage the child and family for primary and specialty care visits. For an additional 45 hours, students may select a specialty pediatric area (e.g., endocrine, neurology, pulmonary, cardiology, urgent care, etc.), where advanced assessment skills are applied. Students must have hands-on interaction with patients.
Preceptors: APRN (PNP or PCNS) is preferred, MD/DO; PA considered on an individual basis; may have up to 2 different preceptors
Telehealth: Limited telehealth considered

NURSE 8400 Adult and Geriatric Primary Care I
Clinical Hours: 90
Overview: The focus of the courses is primary care management of chronic illness, including acute exacerbation.
Setting: For FNP students: An outpatient family medicine or internal medicine clinic is the required site for FNP students. ER, urgent care, convenient care, or walk-in clinics are not acceptable sites for these courses. CNS students are required to spend approximately 45 hours in a clinical setting with an adult/gerontology health care provider where advanced assessment and diagnostic skills are applied to evaluate and manage the patient for primary and specialty care visits. For an additional 45 hours, students may select a specialty area (endocrine, neurology, pulmonary, cardiology, urgent care, etc.), based upon the CNS students career goals where advanced assessment skills are applied.
Preceptors: For FNP students, it is preferred that you work with a family nurse practitioner; adult/gerontology CNS preceptor is preferred; however, you may work with an MD, DO, ANP, or GNP for only one of the courses (N8400 OR N8410). 
Telehealth: Limited telehealth considered

NURSE 8410 Adult and Geriatric Primary Care II
Clinical Hours: 90
Overview: The focus of the courses is primary care management of chronic illness, including acute exacerbation.
Setting:  For FNP students: An outpatient family medicine or internal medicine clinic is the required site. ER, urgent care, convenient care, or walk-in clinics are not acceptable sites for these courses. CNS students are required to spend approximately 45 hours in a clinical setting with an adult/gerontology health care provider where advanced assessment and diagnostic skills are applied to evaluate and manage the patient for primary and specialty care visits. For an additional 45 hours, students may select a specialty area, based upon the CNS students’ career goals (e.g., endocrine, neurology, pulmonary, cardiology, urgent care, etc.) where advanced assessment skills are applied.
Preceptors: For FNP students, we prefer that you work with a family nurse practitioner; For CNS students, an adult/gerontology preceptor is preferred; however, students are allowed to work with an MD, DO, ANP, or GNP for only one of the courses (N8400 OR N8410).  
Telehealth: Limited telehealth considered

NURSE 8420 Newborn Through Adolescence Primary Care
Clinical Hours: 90
Overview: The focus of the Newborn through Adolescence course is pediatric primary care. Hours will be spent in clinical with a pediatric health care provider where advanced assessment and diagnostic skills are applied to evaluate and manage the family and child for well, acute minor illness or stable chronic illness visits. 
Setting: A pediatric primary care practice is the required setting to gain experience in foundational growth and development, red flags, care of the well child, milestones, and anticipatory guidance. CNS students are required to spend approximately 45 hours in a clinical setting with a pediatric health care provider where advanced assessment and diagnostic skills are applied to evaluate and manage the child and family for primary and specialty care visits. For an additional 45 hours, CNS students may select a specialty pediatric area (e.g., endocrine, neurology, pulmonary, cardiology, urgent care, etc.), where advanced assessment skills are applied. Students must have hands-on interaction with patients
Preceptors: A PNP, PCNS or Pediatrician in primary care is preferred, and an FNP or Family Practice Physician is acceptable if you see an average of 8 – 10 pediatric patients daily. 
Telehealth: Limited telehealth is considered

NURSE 8430 Reproductive and Sexual Health Primary Care
Clinical Hours: 90
Overview: This course involves clinical experiences across the broad range of reproductive health. Approximately 45 hours should include advanced assessment and diagnostic skills applied to the reproductive needs of men** and women, including older, post-menopausal women. The other 45 hours of clinical should include assessing and managing pregnant women.
Setting: Women's health centers, men's health centers, sexually transmitted disease (STD) clinics, teen clinics, Planned Parenthood and OB/GYN practice settings would be ideal. Students may find access to this wide variety of clinical experiences in one setting or may need to divide their time between two or more settings. 
Preceptors: APRN, MD/DO, PA
Telehealth: No

NURSE 8540 Advanced Diagnostics and Reasoning I
Clinical Hours: 90
Overview: This course is designed to allow the student to expand upon knowledge of advanced assessment, diagnostics, and procedural skills and increase specialty-specific knowledge.
Setting: Clinical settings that permit the student to perform advanced clinical procedural skills as well as refine interpretation of advanced assessment, reasoning and diagnostics is ideal. An emergency or urgent care setting is the preferred setting for at least 50 hours of clinical; however, depending on the student's personal career goals, 40 hours of clinical can occur in a specialized setting: outpatient, inpatient, acute or critical care (adult or pediatric). A setting in which the student only does patient education, staff development, or performance improvement projects would not be appropriate.
Preceptors: MD, DO, APRN or PA
Telehealth: No

NURSE 8545 Advanced Diagnostics and Reasoning II
Clinical Hours: 90
Overview: This course is designed for the newly credentialed APRN as part of the first 1 – 2 semesters of the DNP completion. This course will allow the student to expand upon basic skills and knowledge of advanced assessment, diagnostics, and procedural skills from N8540 to gain increasing specialty-specific knowledge.
Setting: Clinical settings that permit the student to perform advanced clinical procedural skills as well as refine interpretation of advanced assessment, assessment; reasoning and diagnostics is are ideal. An emergency or urgent care setting is ideal as is a specialty setting such as oncology, orthopedics, cardiology, etc. outpatient, inpatient, acute or critical care (adult or pediatric).
Preceptors: Can include MD, DO, APRN or PA. A setting in which the student only does patient education, staff development, or performance improvement projects would not be appropriate.
Telehealth: No

NURSE 8550 Advanced Diagnostic & Reasoning in Practice
Clinical Hours: 90
Overview: This experience is designed to enhance specialty-specific knowledge and procedural proficiency through direct patient care, while ensuring the delivery of safe, high-quality, patient-centered care across diverse populations.
Setting: Clinical experiences occur in a variety of specialty settings, including but not limited to orthopedics, dermatology, radiology, endocrinology, cardiology, wound care, emergency medicine, general surgery, and urgent care, promoting exposure to interprofessional care models and complex healthcare systems.
Preceptors: Preceptors must be licensed APRNs, MDs, or DOs with expertise in the selected specialty. Physician assistants (PAs) may serve as preceptors if they hold a master’s degree and have a minimum of one year of specialty-specific clinical experience.
Telehealth: No

NURSE 8610 Diagnostics and Psychopharmacology for Mental Health Nurses
Clinical Hours: 90
Overview: Students will need to locate a clinical practice site where individuals with a broad range of psychiatric diagnoses receive care (e.g., single purpose substance abuse treatment centers are not appropriate). Students must be able to actively participate in client assessments, diagnosis, and medication management each time they are onsite. Students must work  with work with adults, age 18 and up. Agencies that are not focused primarily on the treatment of patients with mental health problems will not meet the course objectives (e.g., A fibromyalgia clinic that services patients with co-morbid mental health problems is not an appropriate clinical site for this course.)
Setting: Inpatient or outpatient psychiatric facilities, psychiatric private practice, nursing home practice
Preceptors: MD, DO, PA, PMHCNS, PMHNP
Telehealth: Limited telehealth considered only under special circumstances at the discretion of the faculty for no more than 30 hours.

NURSE 8620 Brief Individual and Family Psychotherapy
Clinical Hours: 120 clinical hours (50% individual psychotherapy hours and 50% family psychotherapy hours)
Overview: The focus of clinical hours in this course is brief individual and family psychotherapy. Students should locate a clinical setting(s) in which students can conduct short-term therapy with both individual adult clients and families. The focus of therapy must be on brief/short-term interventions for clients experiencing a time-limited crisis or short-term stressors.
Setting: Psychiatry/psychology private practice, community health centers, university health centers, inpatient and outpatient psychiatric facilities, nursing home psychological practice
Preceptors: Preceptor must focus on psychotherapy and not medication management:
PMHCNS, PMHNP, Psychologist, MSW, LCSW, LPC, LCPC 
Telehealth: Face to face is preferred. Telehealth is considered at the discretion of the faculty.

NURSE 8630 Geriatric Mental Health Assessment and Treatment
Clinical Hours: 60
Overview: Students will need to locate a clinical practice site where individuals over the age of 65 with a broad range of psychiatric diagnoses receive care. Students must be able to actively participate in client assessments, diagnosis, and medication management each time they are on site. Agencies that are not focused primarily on the treatment of patients 65 and older with mental health problems will not meet the course objectives (e.g., a fibromyalgia clinic, neurology clinic or primary care clinic that services patients with co-morbid mental health problems is not an appropriate site for this course.)
Setting: Inpatient or outpatient psychiatric facilities, psychiatric private practice, a psychiatric practice serving nursing homes and assisted living facilities. 
Preceptors: PMHCNS, PMHNP, DO, MD, or PA
Telehealth: Limited telehealth is considered only under special circumstances at the discretion of the faculty for no more than 30 hours.

NURSE 8635 Assessment and Treatment of Substance Abuse Disorders
Clinical Hours: 60
Overview: Students will need to locate a clinical practice site where individuals with a broad range of substance use disorder diagnoses receive care. Students must be able to actively participate in client assessments, diagnosis, and medication management each time they are on site. Students can work with patients across the lifespan. Agencies that are not focused primarily on the treatment of patients with substance use disorder problems will not meet the course objectives (e.g., neurology clinic or primary care clinic that services patients with co-morbid substance use disorder problems is not an appropriate site for this course.) 
Setting: Inpatient or outpatient substance use disorder treatment centers, psychiatric private practice serving persons with substance use disorders, transitional housing, halfway house, homeless shelters, etc.
Preceptors: MD, DO, PA, PMHCNS, PMHNP
Telehealth: Limited telehealth is considered only under special circumstances at the discretion of the faculty for no more than 30 hours. 

NURSE 8640 Group Therapy and Social Skills Training
Clinical Hours: 60
Overview: The focus of this course is group therapy. Students will need to find a setting that offers group interventions for mental health promotion and/or social skills training in which students can lead group therapy for a minimum of six sessions.  
Setting: Transitional housing, halfway house, homeless shelter, nursing home, psychiatric inpatient or outpatient facility, substance abuse center, women’s shelter, church.
Preceptor: must focus on group therapy and not individual/family therapy or medication management:  PMHCNS, PMHNP, Psychologist, MSW, LCSW, LCSW, LPC, LCPC 
Telehealth: Face to face is preferred. Telehealth is considered at the discretion of the faculty.

NURSE 8680 Pediatric Mental Health Assessment and Treatment
Clinical Hours: 90
Overview: The focus of this course is pediatric mental health assessment and treatment. Students will need to locate a clinical practice site where individuals with a broad range of psychiatric diagnoses receive care. Students must be able to actively participate in client assessments, diagnosis, and medication management each time they are on site. Students must work with children and adolescents under the age of 18. Agencies that are not focused primarily on the treatment of patients with mental health problems will not meet the course objectives (e.g., an autism clinic or primary care clinic that services patients with co-morbid mental health problems is not an appropriate site for this course.
However, PNP students taking this course may choose an autism clinic or primary care clinic which deals with co-morbid mental health problems.)  
Setting: Inpatient or outpatient psychiatric facilities, psychiatric private practice, children’s’ homes.
Preceptors: MD, DO, PA, PMHCNS, PMHNP
Telehealth: Limited Telehealth is considered only under special circumstances at the discretion of faculty for no more than 30 hours.

NURSE 8710 Clinical Management of Acute and Critical Care Problems
Clinical Hours: 90
Overview: Clinical hours can be specialty-specific (e.g., cardiovascular ICU, oncology unit, etc.) or more general (e.g., general medical or general surgical unit), depending upon the student's personal career goals.
Setting: inpatient acute care/critical care unit(s) within a hospital or long-term acute care facility; may have up to 2 settings
Preceptors: must have hands-on interaction with patients; APRN (CNS preferable), MD/DO; PA; may have up to 2 different preceptors 
Telehealth: Limited telehealth considered

NURSE 8720 Symptom Management in Acute and Chronic Illness
Clinical Hours: 90
Overview: Clinical hours can occur in a variety of healthcare settings depending on the student's personal career goals. Since the focus of the course is teaching client symptom and self-management strategies, clinical settings that emphasize patient and nursing staff education would be ideal. The setting can be specialty specific (e.g., inpatient pain management service, outpatient cardiac rehabilitation, pediatric diabetes clinic, etc.) or more general (e.g. general medical or general surgical unit).
Setting: inpatient, outpatient/primary care, may have up to 2 settings 
Preceptors: Must have hands-on interaction with patients; APRN (CNS preferred), MD/DO; PA considered on an individual basis; may have up to 2 different preceptors.
Telehealth: Limited telehealth considered

NURSE 8920 Quality, Safety, and Performance Outcomes
Clinical Hours:60 clinical hours; (not included in APRN certification requirements)
Overview: The course involves clinical training which will be completed by working individually and in groups to carry out a variety of quality improvement (QI) exercises. A case study incorporating a variety of QI tools and methodologies from the course will be utilized to present a comprehensive QI process and plan which will be presented to the class. The clinical component is under the direction of faculty and no outside clinical site, or preceptor is required for this course.  
Setting: N/A
Preceptors: Faculty
Telehealth: N/A

NURSE 8950 Teaching Nursing Practicum
Clinical Hours: 240 clinical hours (not included in APRN certification requirements)
Overview: The focus of this course is teaching didactic and clinical to undergraduate nursing students.
Setting: An academic institution with a baccalaureate school of nursing would be ideal, though a SON with an associate degree program will be accepted if there is no baccalaureate program in your geographic area. You should choose a program that has a course that you would like to teach that is in your area of expertise. The course must have both a didactic and clinical component. Your schedule will be whatever your chosen SON’s schedule is. Some of you may be doing an 8-week class while others may have a 15-week class. Some of you may have clinicals two days a week while others have clinical only one day per week. 
Preceptors: Your preceptor must be a nursing faculty member with a minimum of a master’s degree in nursing.
Telehealth: N/A

NURSE 8954 Distance-Mediated Teaching Nursing Practicum
Clinical Hours: 240 clinical hours (not included in APRN certification requirements)
Overview: Clinical in this course will occur with nursing faculty at the SSON who teach online. Course faculty will pair students with their faculty mentor based on student expertise and needs. In addition, course faculty will arrange an on- campus event for each student; thus, requiring an on- campus visit.
Setting: A graduate or undergraduate course taught online at the Sinclair School of Nursing.
Preceptors: A graduate level nursing faculty member at the Sinclair School of ursing. The N8954 course faculty will confer with students and then coordinate the didactic and on campus requirements to best meet the students' needs with available courses being taught during the semester the N8954 course is taken.
Telehealth: N/A

NURSE 8960 Leadership in Nursing and Healthcare Systems Practicum
Clinical Hours: 180
Overview: This course focuses on leadership and management strategies for nurse leaders that are implemented in various health care settings. Students will have the opportunity to operationalize nurse leader theory content learned in the prerequisite courses. Leadership and management principles will be explored in didactic and clinical settings via a preceptor clinical experience with a nurse leader. Readings of the course support the exploration of leadership skills and management strategies in the practicum setting.
Setting: The student selects a health care setting to precept with a master’s prepared nurse.  
Preceptor: Minimum Master’s prepared nurse. The nurse must have a minimum of a BSN. A master’s degree in nursing is preferred but may be in another area of study as approved by the faculty member.
Telehealth: N/A

NURSE 8980 Advanced Clinical Nursing Practicum
Clinical Hours: clinical hours vary
Overview: The number of clinical hours for this course varies depending upon the student's number of prior faculty supervised advanced practice clinical hours. The focus of this course is to provide the MSN or MSN prepared post-graduate certificate student with the opportunity to refine clinical knowledge and leadership skills necessary to evaluate practice problems, monitor outcomes, and implement innovative models of care.
Setting: Variety of healthcare settings (e.g., emergency department, inpatient, outpatient, rehabilitation, etc.) working with their population (adult or pediatric) and specialty of interest consistent with specialty program focus; up to three different settings per semester. Students must have hands on interaction with patients. 
Preceptors: Students may have up to three preceptors but must complete at least 60 hours per preceptor. At least half of a student's hours must be completed in their emphasis area, for example, FNP primary care setting or PNP primary care setting.
Telehealth: No. Exception for PMHNP students. PMHNP telehealth is considered at the discretion of the PMHNP faculty for no more than 30% of the total N8980 clinical hours.

NURSE 9070 DNP Clinical Residency
Clinical Hours: clinical hours vary
Overview: The number of clinical hours for this course varies depending on the students’ number of prior faculty-supervised advanced practice clinical hours. The focus of this course is to provide the DNP student, or DNP-prepared post-graduate certificate student with the opportunity to refine the clinical knowledge and leadership skills necessary to evaluate practice problems, monitor outcomes, and implement innovative models of care.
Setting: A variety of healthcare settings (e.g. emergency department, inpatient, outpatient, rehabilitation, etc.) working with their population (adult or pediatric) and specialty of interest consistent with specialty program focus; up to three different settings per semester. Students must have hands-on interaction with patients. 
Preceptors: Master’s degree required; doctoral degree preferred; up to three different preceptors per semester but limited to one preceptor per 60 clinical hours.
- APRN students – APRN within same specialty preferred or other APRN or MD/DO; PA considered on individual basis; Arizona students may not use a PA preceptor. 
- Leadership students – educator, leader, program director
Telehealth: No. Exception for PMHNP students. PMHNP telehealth is considered at the discretion of the PMHNP faculty for no more than 30% of the total N9070 clinical hours.

NURSE 9080 DNP Residency Project
Clinical Hours: 180 clinical hours total, 60 clinical hours in each section (not included in APRN certification requirements)
Overview: This course involves working on an in-depth practice-change quality improvement project that will impact their population and specialty of interest. See Graduate Handbook for specific requirements for each section.
Setting: Can occur in a variety of healthcare settings, for APRN students must be consistent with program focus (primary care versus acute care, adult and/or pediatric); the preferred setting would provide the student with the opportunity to impact a rural or underserved population or address a significant healthcare system need; same setting for all 3 sections.
Preceptors:  DNP Project Committee Site member (3rd reader) – master’s degree required; doctoral degree preferred; affiliated with setting for DNP Project; same preceptor for all 3 sections
Telehealth: N/A