Gaps exist in health professional education versus the demands of current practice. Leveraging front-line nurses to teach students exemplary practice in a Dedicated Education Unit (DEU) may narrow this gap. The DEU is an innovative model for experiential learning, capitalizing on the expertise of staff nurses as clinical teachers. This study evaluated the effectiveness of a new academic-practice DEU in facilitating quality and safety competency achievement among students. Six clinical teachers received education in clinical teaching and use of Quality and Safety Education for Nurses (QSEN) competencies to guide acquisition of essential knowledge, skills, and attitudes for continuous health care improvement. Twelve students assigned to the six teachers completed daily logs for the 10-week practicum. Findings suggest that DEU students achieved QSEN competencies through clinical teacher mentoring in interdisciplinary collaboration, using electronic information for best practice and patient teaching, patient/family decision making, quality improvement, and resolution of safety issues.

Central to the practice of professional nursing are the elements of accountability, autonomy, direct communication, and authority. The value that nursing work groups place on authority affects their level of acceptance of responsibility and accountability for clinical decision making. The authors examined the value that nurse managers and staff nurses on primary nursing and total patient care units place on authority/responsibility relationships. Results indicated that nurse managers and staff nurses on primary nursing units valued accountability, authority, and autonomy more than the nurse managers and staff nurses on total patient care units, a finding consistent with the professional practice model of primary nursing.

The novel coronavirus disease, SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19), outbreak rapidly generated an unparalleled global, national, and state public health crisis, and by March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO, 2020a) declared this international emergency a pandemic. As of July 21, 2020, globally there have been 14,562,550 confirmed cases and 607,781 deaths. In the United States (US) there have been 3,748,248 confirmed cases and 139,964 deaths (WHO, 2020b). According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2019), the influenza outbreak of 1918 caused by the H1N1 virus was the most severe pandemic in recent history, and now, over a century later we are faced with the COVID-19 global pandemic that is not only threatening the public but overpowering our health care, public health, and economic systems. U.S. hospitals are being challenged to accommodate the unprecedented number of patients needing

Model C clinical nurse leader (CNL) programs are complex because they must meet the The Essentials of Baccalaureate Education for Professional Nursing Practice and The Essentials of Master's Education in Nursing, as well as the graduate level competencies outlined in the white paper Competencies and Curricular Expectations for Clinical Nurse Leader Education and Practice. Faculty assigned to teach in these programs may be experts in education or areas of clinical specialty, but they may not have a clear understanding of the CNL role to teach and mentor CNL students. This article describes a faculty development model that includes an introduction to the CNL role, course mapping of the essentials, integration of CNL professional values into clinical evaluation, consultation with practicing model C graduates, and participation in a comprehensive CNL certification review course. The model was effective in preparing faculty to teach and mentor students in a model C CNL program.