Background: Within the past several years, an innovative model for collaboration has emerged between schools of nursing and hospitals to increase the enrollment in schools of nursing by utilizing experienced staff nurses as hospital adjunct clinical instructors (HACI). The HACI is temporarily released from typical job duties to serve as a clinical instructor for a group of undergraduate nursing students.
Aim: The purpose of this study is to determine if HACIs are as effective as faculty employed by schools of nursing.
Method: A convenience sample of new graduate nurses participated in the descriptive study. The nurses were asked to evaluate their senior year medical-surgical clinical instructor using Reeve's Instrument to Measure Effectiveness of Clinical Instructors.
Results: There was no statistically significant difference in the clinical teaching effectiveness of HACIs and school of nursing faculty.
Conclusion: This study provides early support for the use of HACIS. However, more studies are needed to validate their effectiveness.