Are you a nursing student? Gain hands-on nursing knowledge and skills through Sheppard Pratt’s Nurse Extern program! We offer training, employment, and enriching educational experiences for nursing students. After you’ve completed Sheppard Pratt’s Nurse Extern program, you’ll be well prepared for a rewarding career as a registered nurse.
What You Learn as a Nurse Extern
Sheppard Pratt’s Nurse Extern program is designed to enhance the following skills:
- Communication
- Patient engagement
- Behavioral assessment
- Autonomy
- Delegation
- Time management
- Quality & safety knowledge
- Teamwork
- Creation & maintenance of a therapeutic milieu
- Implementation of evidence-based practices
Our program has an emphasis on holistic nursing practices and the mind-body connection.
Program Objectives
Our comprehensive program objectives put education for nursing students first. In our program, you will:
- Apply therapeutic communication skills in patient care and team interactions to help create a therapeutic milieu
- Compare current practices with quality/safety and evidence-based best practices, noting opportunities for enhancement
- Utilize patient engagement and psychological/behavioral assessment skills to prevent crisis situations and improve the patient experience
- Appreciate the paradigm of holistic care through participation in and contributions to patient care planning
Education for Nurse Externs at Sheppard Pratt
When you participate in Sheppard Pratt’s Nurse Extern program, you have the unique opportunity to participate in mentoring as well as hands-on clinical and educational experiences at one of the nation’s top psychiatric hospitals. Our nurse externs participate in clinical observations across a variety of disciplines and treatment modalities, attend care team meetings, get certification in Crisis Prevention Management, participate in behavioral crisis simulation, and much more.
You may have experiences in:
- One or more behavioral health specialties which can include eating disorders, trauma disorders, mood disorders, autism spectrum disorder, among others
- Neurostimulation modalities like electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)
- Behavioral health crisis management through simulations
- Crisis prevention
- Shadowing nurses in leadership roles
- Attending and contributing to care team meetings
Why Choose Sheppard Pratt’s Nurse Extern Program?
Develop the skills you need to be a great nurse
Sheppard Pratt offers unparalleled opportunities to gain experience in behavioral health – and develop the skills you need to be the best nurse you can be. Patient engagement, therapeutic communication, and crisis management skills are essential for nurses in all care settings.
Work with and learn from the best and brightest
Sheppard Pratt is one of the top psychiatric hospitals in the nation. You’ll be working with some of the brightest minds in the field and will have the chance to learn about new and evolving treatments in behavioral health.
Interesting cases & the latest advances in psychiatry
If you’re interested in a career in behavioral health, there’s no better place to gain experience. Sheppard Pratt works with all psychiatric diagnoses and has a range of care settings. You’ll have the chance to work on interesting cases and gain hands-on skills quickly
Eligibility for Participation
Sheppard Pratt’s Nurse Extern program admits a select number of nursing students each period. All nursing students with at least one successful semester of clinical education at an accredited RN preparatory program (ASN, BSN, and MSN) are eligible to apply.
Nurse Extern Program Sequence
We offer flexible schedules for nurse externs, as well as opportunities to continue on with employment at Sheppard Pratt through our Nurse Residency Program. Nurses should apply in the spring to complete the program in the summer prior to their last year (or last two semesters) of school.
Below is a sample program sequence:
- Apply to Sheppard Pratt’s Nurse Extern Program
- March through April: Acceptance into program (full-time or part-time employment)
- May: Begin program – initial training and competency
- May through August: Extern Program proceeds – participate in employment and educational opportunities
- August through graduation from RN program: Employment and educational experiences continue (may reduce employment to part-time or per diem)
- Graduation: Apply to Sheppard Pratt’s Nurse Residency Program
- Pass NCLEX
- Enter Sheppard Pratt’s Nurse Residency Program with full-time employment as an RN
Ready to take the next step towards your nursing career?
Please note: we only accept applications in the spring as this program occurs yearly.