Karen Tepper, DNP, APRN, ANP-BC

VISN1 Clinical Contact Center Director 

Co-Director NP Residency Program

NOVA Chapter 226

Registered Nurses (RNs) and Nurse Practitioners (NPs) are among the top Veterans Health Administration (VHA) Mission Critical Occupations (MCO) identified as a priority for recruitment and retention initiatives. Due to the current national shortage of experienced nursing workforce, VHA has, similar to counterparts in the private sector, resorted to filling nursing vacancies with new graduate nurses. Both observation and literature demonstrate that newly graduated RNs and NPs benefit from additional experiential training to master their clinical skills. The VA Office of Academic Affiliations (OAA) Nurse Residency programs are designed: (1) to ensure the supervised transition of newly graduated nurses to safe and competent clinical practice in an academic residency model and (2) to enhance recruitment and retention of VA nurses. VA OAA Academic Nurse Residency program positions are funded centrally by OAA trainee funds. The OAA academic training program is a one-year (12 months) program during which the trainees have 100% protected time to master the complexities of caring for Veterans. This is a twelve-month inter-professional training program.

The VA Boston Healthcare System Nurse Practitioner Residency Program provides a comprehensive educational experience using didactic, clinical, and scholarly components to enhance the training of the newly licensed Nurse Practitioner in the care of the American Veteran. The program assists the Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN) to develop from a novice provider to a competent, confident and independent APRN practitioner in primary care. The Adult Geriatric Nurse Practitioner Residency program prepares Nurse Practitioners for professional leadership, education, and research in an inter-professional practice setting. The Adult Geriatric Nurse Practitioner Residency Program is partnered with Northeastern University School of Nursing (NUSON). The VA Boston HCS and Northeastern University SON support evidenced-based nursing research and clinical practice education. This academic practice partnership fosters a supportive learning environment for academic, professional, and personal success.

2020-2021 VABHS 1st Cohort of Primary Care NP Residents: (Left to Right)

Chizoba Nwosu, PhD, APRN, FNP-BC, Co-Director PC NP Residency Program; Abigail Munroe, NP Resident Graduate; Ifeoma Ugbo, NP Resident Graduate; and Karen Tepper, DNP, APRN, ANP-BC, Co-Director NP Residency Program