Education

Mercy Medical Center-North Iowa Graduate Nursing Internship Program

Mercy Medical Center-North Iowa is proud to announce the creation of an innovative educational program for new nursing graduates. This internship will be offered once thisyear, running July 2004 to December 2004.

New graduates accepting a full-time Registered Nurse Intern position will be provided an opportunity to spend six months learning from expert nurses at Mercy Medical Center. You will be paid the base registered nurse (RN) hourly wage during your internship and be classified as a full-time employee and receive full-time benefits.

Critically Ill Patient Internship
The program provides a basic foundation in the principles of nursing, including rapid assessment, critical care courses, critical thinking skills, and classroom case studies combined with extensive clinical experiences with a preceptor in assigned Emergency Center, Critical Care Unit, and the Cardiac Step Down Unit. Seminar sessions review clinical progress and support the nurse’s transition. The program includes the following:

  • Individualized Rotation (approximately 768 hours)
    During an internship, the intern will become familiar with 3 units- Critical Care, Emergency Center, and the Medical Telemetry Unit. The intern also will become familiar with other units such as radiology, lab, cardiac cath lab, procedure recovery unit, cardiac rehab, surgery, post-anesthesia recovery unit, etc.- as he/she follows patients throughout their hospital stays.
  • One to One Preceptors in Clinical Areas
    Preceptors are experienced unit-based RNs who work one on one with interns to provide challenging patient care experiences. Additionally, the preceptors teach technical skills share clinical knowledge, and help interns develop critical thinking and clinical decision making skills. The intern spends 80 percent of his/her internship hours in clinical areas.
  • Didactic and Skills Lab Education (approximately 192 hours)
    Interns will learn from advanced nurse practitioners and other clinical experts in classroom and skills lab opportunities. Topics will include patient care activities, communication skills, critical thinking and clinical judgment skills, delegation skills, and more. This valuable education/training provides the knowledge and experience necessary for interns to make the successful transition from the new graduate nurse to a professional RN. The intern spends 20 percent of his/her internship hours in classroom and skills lab education.

Self-Care/Support Groups
Interns will participate in RN self-care and support groups, which are led by expert facilitators. These groups will offer a safe, confidential environment in which to share experiences and develop the practical skills needed to deal with the stresses of being a new RN professional.

  • Caring and Committed Mentors
    A mentor is an experienced RN who will support the intern and help him/her navigate the complexities of nursing. A mentor is not an intern’s preceptor or manager, but a non-evaluative, supportive RN on staff at Mercy. Interns will find that having a mentor enhances their critical thinking and communication skills, helps them build confidence and self-esteem, and encourages self-evaluation, independent thinking, emotional maturity, and conflict resolution.

This is an excellent opportunity to gain the knowledge and skills required to work in the Critical Care Specialty areas.

Application for the internship may be completed on a Mercy Medical Center-North Iowa employment application. Selection will be based upon a combination of an interview, references, and transcripts.

  • Summer RN Internship positions for May graduates to post for application by mid March.
  • Winter RN Internship positions for December graduates to post for application by mid November.

New graduates who enter the internship program will be committing to work at Mercy Medical Center – North Iowa for a one and a half year period post completion.

For more information, contact Angela Carman in the Human Resources Department by calling 641.422.7806, or toll-free at 1.800.433.3883, ext. 7806. You may also contact us by email.