Collège Communautaire du Nouveau Brunswick – Licenced Practical Nurse

Programs summary

CCNB proposes to improve the integration process of foreign licenced practical nurses to practice in New Brunswick by offering a competency recognition process and a series of micro credential modules to obtain the required competencies for entry to practice.

CCNB already delivers a full two-year diploma aimed at attracting new students to the profession. The existing two-year program will be divided into a series of modules to increase access to training.

Innovations will focus on:

PLAR: Develop the PLAR tools to identify and evaluate required competencies to be obtained for entry into the profession as established by the Canadian Council for Practical Nurse Regulators (CCPNR) and the Association of New Brunswick Licenced Practical Nurses (ANBLPN).

Individualized training plans (micro credentials): Develop a series of micro credential modules divided by core competencies. The modules will consist of courses offered in class and practicums offered in hospitals and nursing home facilities keeping in mind the goal to maximize accessibility to students from various rural regions. Through the PLAR process, students will only need to complete the required modules.

Work Integrated Learning : Work integrated learning experiences will be part of the delivery of the modules. Partnerships with employers and the ANBLPN are already established.

Admission Requirements

LPN training from a foreign country or being a past licensed practical nurse in New Brunswick or another Canadian province.

Program Length

Fifteen months (depending on number of courses to be followed according to individual PLAR process) – to begin in Winter of 2022.

Equity & Diversity

New Canadians

Mid-career workers

Industry Partners

Association of New Brunswick Licensed Practical Nurses

Réseau de Santé Vitalité

Horizon Health Network

Project Highlights

Highlights

Program Summary

The Practical Nursing Transition and Readmission program was developed using a competency-based approach to learning (CCDA). This program is approved by the Licensed Practical Nurses Association of New Brunswick (NAANB).

The program aims to prepare the student to enter or re-enter the profession in practical nursing. The program has been designed to allow candidates recommended by the AIAANB to update their training according to an individualized path. This program is primarily intended for individuals who have been trained outside of Canada, either in a foreign country or in another Canadian province, or those who wish to return to practice in New Brunswick.

Admission requirements

Be admitted to the New Brunswick Association of Practical Nurses (AIAANB);
Have been recommended by a provincial regulatory body;
Have an up-to-date certification of the General First Aid in the Workplace and CPR – Level C course (for health professionals).

Duration of the program

The duration of the program is 285 hours of training, including the possibility of an enrichment internship in an acute care setting. The training schedule is divided according to a joint commitment between the student and the educational institution. The duration may vary according to the requirements of the AIAANB, relating to the evaluation of each candidate’s individual file and according to his or her learning path.

Innovations include:

Prior Learning Assessment and Recognition:

The Practical Nursing Transition and Readmission program is offered:

Canadian-trained licensed practical nurses who wish to return to practice; or who have difficulty passing the national examination; or have performance challenges requiring corrective action;
persons trained in practical nursing or nursing abroad who wish to practise in New Brunswick and Canada;
Canadian nursing graduates who have not passed the National Nursing Entrance Examination.

In addition, the Nursing Support Services (NISS) and Practical Nursing (LPN) programs have a common core of 17 weeks. At the end of the first semester, the student can decide to stay in the SSSI program or to continue in SIA and vice versa.

In addition, competency assessment and validation tools have been developed within the Practical Nursing program, which are used to assess both learning within training and previous training experiences.

Individualized training plans (microcredits):

At CCNB, the nursing continuum is being developed for all levels of the profession, from the Assistant Care Support Worker to the Nursing Transition and Readmission Program (bachelor’s level). The TDCA has greatly facilitated the development of programs on this continuum, which are intertwined with each other, while retaining certain particularities. This exercise highlighted the training courses that could be the subject of microcredits.

The NBCC is currently conducting analyses with employers to confirm the skills profile of the targeted trades and occupations (MPAs), which will allow the development of curricula that meet the real needs of the market. Our programs aim at distance learning, in simulated environments (laboratories) and in real environments (public and private health institutions).

The development of curricula will make it possible to formalize the Continuum of Nursing Education.

Work-integrated learning:

Since the implementation of the ACDC, students are better prepared to transition from the contextualized learning environment in the classroom to the simulated environment (laboratory) and subsequently to integrate and respond more easily to the demands of the real environment (internship).

Equity and diversity

Candidates with an immigrant background

Mid-career workers

Industry Partners

- Licensed Practical Nurses Association of New Brunswick
- Private and public care facilities

Lessons Learned

The former Practical Nursing (LPS) program was so full that it was intended to extend its duration. With the exercise, we realized that the contents were repetitive and dispersed. The TDCA significantly reduced the number of courses and found that the length of the program was entirely appropriate. In addition, the quality of training has been greatly improved.
During training, we found that first-year students in the AIS program in ACDC were more advanced in several respects than those in the second year of the old program.
The common core of the two programs, Nursing Support Services (NISS) and SIA, allows for greater student retention.
AIAANB requires students to pass 75% on the AIS program. However, students enrolled in the SSSI program who score 75% on each course in the first semester can access the SIA program in the second semester, even if they did not meet the initial admission requirements for the SIA program.
Learning is progressive and constantly reviewed in different contexts representative of the reality of the workplace.
Continuous formative assessment provides a benevolent climate for student learning and support.
Students often forget that they are in summative evaluation.
It is important to remember that not all teachers have the same learning curve when it comes to CCDA.
It is important to ensure ongoing pedagogical support for teachers.

Testimonials

Valérie Levesque, Inclusion Coordinator (August 2012 – February 2022)

“Here’s what I’ve seen as a former CCNB Inclusion Coordinator among students who have particular challenges in the SSSI and AIS programs and who started according to the CCTA last September.

First of all, students tell me they have a lot of fun learning this way. They are two feet in it and have both hands to the dough. They love having the chance to experience their learning in the classroom in the real workplace earlier (hospital, homes).

They feel less stressed, less anxious and do better results. They find a certain collaboration betweenpeers and share with me to have a better relationship with the teachers concerned. By attending their workplace earlier, it also allows them to see if they have made a good career choice.

For my part, a disadvantage that I noticed is that the written evaluations include much more readingdue to the scenarios (cases) present in the evaluations. For students who have particular reading challenges, this can often lead to additional challenges for these students. »

As for the disadvantage mentioned by Valérie and the challenges caused to students, it is indeed a reality, but one that we cannot escape, since the entrance exam at the end of the training consists only of complex situations with answers in the form of multiple choice. Students must therefore be prepared.

Maryse Martin, teacher in the SIA program (laboratories – simulated clinical situations)

“The competency-based approach allows students to learn in the lab without feeling like they’re constantly evaluating. This approach allows them to make mistakes and improve on an ongoing basis. Care skills come up repeatedly, but in different contexts, allowing the student to develop and learn from his mistakes. Each laboratory is not an end in itself, but a portion of continuous learning. It is easier with this approach to develop critical thinking about the nursing profession, and especially to make clinical connections. Teachers always use concrete objectives to develop students’ knowledge, even if some of them have no knowledge in the field of health. With this approach, we have extraordinary results! »

SIA^1st year student

” In any case Mrs. Julie, the course that has been set up is just wow! It’s amazing how by doing the themes, we understand better and then the debriefing in the laboratory allows us to apply right away. I’m so glad I started in the new program. »

SIA^1st year student

“By telling my experience to current hospital employees, they made me realize how much more ready we will be for internships, since we learn from scenarios based on real situations and we learn how to fill out the documentation at the same time.”

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