A Closer Look at Critical Care Education
What you need to know about this opportunity
Interested in pursuing a career in Critical Care?
The Winnipeg Critical Care Nursing Education Program (WCCNEP) offers an exciting opportunity for nurses to earn while they learn the most up-to-date and technologically advanced methods of treating and provide high quality care to critically ill patients in the intensive care.
The WCCNEP is offered twice a year, January and September, and prepares registered nurses to work within areas such as the medical, surgical, intermediate, neonatal and pediatric ICUs.
"We're looking for individuals with at least a year - preferably more - of solid acute care nursing experience," says Lissa Currie, Coordinator, Critical Care Education.
If you've ever wondered about working in critical care but weren't sure if it was the right fit for you, arrangements can be made to do a shadow shift in one of the ICUs to help you with your decision.
If you know this is what you want, then apply for WCCNEP and go through the interview process. "The interview process helps us to understand where the applicants' are currently at with their nursing experiences and to assess their critical thinking, problem solving and communication skills," says Currie.
Another opportunity to consider is the WCCNEP Arrhythmia Course. This is offered three times a year for all nurses working in monitored areas or for those interested in gaining rhythm analysis knowledge and skills as part of their career plan. Currently Rhythms are taught in the WCCNEP Program however starting September 2016, the WCCNEP Arrhythmia Course will be a pre-requisite.
The program itself is a mixture of theory, lab and clinical. Throughout the eight weeks of theory, students also visit the ICU four or five times. "This helps to familiarize them with the environment, staff, and gives them an opportunity to perform some of the newly learnt skills in the real setting. Student feedback has been very positive and they report feeling less anxious when they enter for their buddied clinical experience," says Currie.
During the buddied clinical, the nurse learner is partnered with bedside nurses for eight weeks, four in a medical ICU and four in a surgical ICU. In addition, a critical care educator will be available on the unit to assist with integration into the unit, knowledge application and skill performance. The buddied experience helps the nurse learner to increase their independence gradually while in a supported role.
Once buddied clinical has been successfully completed, nurse learners begin an additional four to eight weeks of specialized orientation at their home site/unit, which allows the nurse learners to become fully immersed in the specifics of the patient populations they will be caring for. During this time, nurses in the WCCNEP function as independent practitioners who are assigned a preceptor. This helps those nurses to build their confidence, as well as hone their new skills while caring for critically ill patients and their families.
"Staff in the Intensive Care Units is key to the success of WCCNEP nurse learners," says Currie. "They act as a role models, mentors and teachers for them."
Preceptor workshops are offered twice a year. These workshops help provide the nurses working in the ICU with the right tools to aid in the mentoring and evaluation of the nurses in the WCCNEP.
During the last week of the WCCNEP, Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) is offered. Successful completion of the WCCNEP is celebrated at a graduation ceremony.
Winnipeg has a very dynamic critical care community as well as an active professional association. The Manitoba Chapter of the Canadian Association of Critical Care Nurses, and several WRHA ICUs sponsor numerous local educational workshops and conferences that are held annually.