From provider to professor: Supporting nurse practitioner faculty through NONPF's Faculty Institute

Abstract

Over the past 15 years, the number of practicing nurse practitioners (NPs) has increased exponentially. This growth has been sustained by an increase in the number of schools offering NP preparation. Experienced NPs have assumed faculty positions in these schools. Although educational curricula prepare NPs to deliver high-quality patient care, it does not prepare graduates for academic roles in teaching, dissemination of scholarship, or service leadership to advance the profession. To address these gaps in NP faculty preparation, faculty development resources specific to NP education are needed. The National Organization of Nurse Practitioner Faculties (NONPF) has stepped forward to fill this gap. The NONPF Faculty Institute was created in 2017, and it includes the annual Fall Conference, the Faculty Leadership Mentoring Program, the Webinar Series, and, most recently, the joint NPACE/NONPF New Faculty Development Program. This comprehensive focus on faculty development aligns with NONPF's mission to promote excellence in NP education and advance the NP role in health care. Programs in the NONPF Faculty Institute are specifically designed to address the distinct learning needs of NP faculty. They use “just in time” presentations and active learning strategies to provide NP faculty with easily accessible and targeted content and opportunities for direct application of new skills. The Institute's goal is to provide NP faculty opportunities to prepare themselves to meet the teaching, scholarship and service leadership expectations of academia, the learning needs of students, and advance the impact of NP practice on patient and health care system outcomes.